A cold, eerie wind blew through the darkening woods.
Jeanne Alter finally understood why she'd never heard of this church before. Built in a remote, desolate place like this and clearly abandoned, it made perfect sense that it remained unnoticed.
Closer and closer they drew, until Jeanne and Asia passed through the gloom-shrouded forest and finally saw the decrepit building ahead.
Churches were supposed to be sanctuaries granted by God, but Jeanne felt nothing but corruption radiating from this place.
She also sensed countless hostile gazes, heavy with malice and killing intent, focused on them ever since they entered the woods.
Whoever was watching had yet to make their move, probably debating how to act. Jeanne wasn't worried; the thick hostility practically saturated the air. They wouldn't be able to hold themselves back much longer.
But Asia, walking nervously beside Jeanne, seemed unaware of those gazes. Despite Jeanne's best efforts to appear approachable and gentle, the girl still looked anxious and withdrawn.
To anyone, the sudden appearance of a long-dead saint would raise suspicion. To counter this, Jeanne had casually shared some stories from "her past," anecdotes she knew from her own nature—being a counterfeit summoned by Gilles de Rais—and from the real Jeanne she'd known in Chaldea. Her recounting was convincing enough to earn Asia's trust.
Asia was especially quick to trust others, making Jeanne's little game easier to play. By now, Asia looked at Jeanne with eyes full of innocent admiration.
But Jeanne knew this sickening charade couldn't continue much longer.
"Gilles helped me tremendously," Jeanne spoke softly, feigning a gentle melancholy. "Sometimes I wonder—if Gilles hadn't supported me so unwaveringly, perhaps I would've fallen much earlier."
"Yet Gilles could also be troublesome. Whenever someone brought up anything related to me, he got overly excited. If he cornered you into conversation, you'd better prepare yourself mentally for at least three hours of nonstop chatter."
"In such times, poking him in the eyes usually calmed him down… probably."
Gilles de Rais—Asia knew the name. A French marshal during the Hundred Years' War, a noble, a soldier, and the trusted right hand of Jeanne d'Arc.
He'd been a brave and honorable military leader who, under normal circumstances, would've lived and died with glory. However, Asia knew his end had been anything but noble.
Gilles had once been a devout believer. But after Jeanne d'Arc was branded a heretic and executed, he lost faith, descending into depravity. He kidnapped and brutally murdered children in his domain, becoming the prototype for the later fairy tale villain "Bluebeard."
"How Gilles ended up… was partly my fault," Jeanne murmured. "We can't change the past, but I still pray his soul might find redemption."
These were the words Jeanne herself had spoken in Chaldea, words Jeanne Alter now repeated from memory. But the emotion woven into them was real. Jeanne Alter, too, wished redemption for Gilles. After all, only Gilles—and perhaps Master—would unconditionally stand by her side, no matter what.
"Miss Jeanne, you can stop here."
Asia halted suddenly, still some distance away from the church. It seemed she didn't want Jeanne to accompany her any farther.
"Why?"
Jeanne gazed curiously at Asia. "The church is still a ways ahead, isn't it? It's dark now—are you sure you'll be alright alone?"
"I-I'll be fine," Asia replied anxiously, her voice trembling slightly, as if eager to hurry Jeanne away.
"Please don't worry about me, I'm truly safe now… You should hurry home, Miss Jeanne. Ophis is waiting for you, isn't she?"
Asia was desperate for Jeanne to leave.
She didn't understand how the long-dead saint could possibly stand before her now, alive and breathing. But she had chosen to believe Jeanne's story, believing wholeheartedly that this woman was indeed Saint Jeanne d'Arc.
And precisely because she believed, Asia didn't want Jeanne to encounter the people in that church.
Cast out as a witch, Asia now had nowhere else to turn. She had no choice but to stay with those similarly abandoned by God. Asia was terrified of what they might do if they discovered Jeanne's identity.
Naively, she believed that those inside the church hadn't noticed their arrival.
"What are you doing, Asia?"
Despite the late hour, darkness deepened further, black feathers descending ominously from the sky.
Black wings—the unmistakable mark of a fallen angel.
The woman who appeared wore thigh-high boots and leather gloves. Yet, aside from these, her clothing was hardly more than a few scraps of cloth barely covering her curvaceous body, creating a bizarre and uncomfortable sight.
At the arrival of the fallen angel Raynare, Asia's face drained of color.
Staring hungrily and viciously at Asia, Raynare's lips twisted into a cruel smile. "When I saw you bringing a filthy human tainted by devil stink here, I thought you'd finally come to your senses. But what did you do instead? Letting her leave again? Still too weak-hearted, aren't you?"
"D-devil… tainted?"
Asia's eyes widened in disbelief, forgetting even how to breathe.
Miss Jeanne… why would she have the scent of devils on her?
"You didn't even notice?" Raynare laughed derisively. "That woman's reeks of devils. I smelled it the moment you stepped into the forest. Absolutely disgusting. She must have spent plenty of time around devils."
Raynare eyed Jeanne with contempt, as though viewing a repulsive insect.
"Now you know, Asia. The woman standing next to you is a human who's been touched by devils. Why hesitate?"
Raynare's smile grew savage. She was desperate to see this former saint finally break. "Kill her—do it for your faith!"
Asia stood frozen, helplessly confused.
But instead of trusting Raynare's words, Asia instinctively looked toward Jeanne, her eyes silently pleading for help.
"Devils…? True, they're devils, but surprisingly, they're a hard group to dislike."
Jeanne smiled gently at Asia. "Someday, Asia, I'll introduce you to them. It might cause some trouble at first, but you're all good-hearted people—I'm sure you'd become friends."
"B-become… friends? With devils?"
Asia was stunned by Jeanne's words. Yet, because it was Jeanne who said it, a tiny flicker of hope sparked within her heart.
Could I… really make friends?
This entire scene made Raynare furious.
She'd wanted to see the fallen saint sink even lower into despair, yet this filthy, devil-corrupted worm dared to influence Asia right before her eyes?
Utterly revolting! Disgusting!
Insects deserved only to be crushed!
Raynare's palm glowed with power, forming a spear of brilliant light that she hurled fiercely at Jeanne.
She imagined the glowing spear piercing the hateful woman's flesh, spilling her blood onto the moonlit ground. But what Raynare envisioned never came true.
The spear shattered—broken by a casual swing of a flaming battle war banner, as easily as an egg smashing against stone.
One hand resting protectively on Asia's shoulder, Jeanne Alter finally shed her facade, glaring scornfully at Raynare as though looking down from above.
"What's wrong? Did you skip dinner or something?"
---
T/N: OH NVM she was just acting, damnnnnn
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