Jeanne listened to Patriot's explanation with genuine surprise. She hadn't expected the old gentleman to come up with such a method to force the Holy Water to react to him.
To make an inanimate substance understand "hostility" and confirm that a person's intent was to cause harm—how did he achieve that? Even as the one who produced the Holy Water, Jeanne couldn't quite grasp how this had become a reality. One could only say that Patriot's actions were truly beyond expectations.
For a demon to find every possible way to use malice and killing intent to force Holy Water to react when it initially ignored him—that was likely a first in history.
"I'm not so concerned about the act itself. I want to know why you decided to do this. This doesn't seem like the calm, collected man I know," Jeanne said, looking at Patriot as he leaned against the headboard.
She wondered what could restore his spirit. Medicine? Or perhaps another prayer?
She quickly dismissed the latter. Praying over a demon... her God might start wondering if His daughter had broken her brain during her time in the mortal realm. It would be like a vampire praying toward a silver cross while surrounded by garlic. She didn't want a "purification" to accidentally exorcise Patriot out of existence.
Patriot's spirit currently seemed withered. His crimson eyes had dimmed to a dark, muddy red, a clear sign that he needed rest. He hadn't felt this weak in a long time—not even back on the borders when he led his kin to slay demons.
Despite his state, Patriot forced himself to focus and shared his thoughts and plans with Jeanne.
"I wanted... to test... the effect of the Holy Water... on the Sarkaz. If it is... as effective... as it was against the Emperor's Blade... our casualties... will be greatly reduced."
Patriot knew that if the enemy intended to capture him, they wouldn't send amateurs. Since the enemy didn't know their information had been leaked, the ones coming would be elites capable of subduing and taking him away even if he were heavily guarded. It wouldn't even be surprising if one or two members of the Royal Court appeared; in fact, he felt it was highly probable.
The people coming wouldn't be the reasonable sort. They wouldn't risk entering Ursus territory on Theresis's orders unless they were formidable. Patriot wasn't afraid of facing them, but he viewed this as a personal matter of his race and didn't want to drag everyone into a bloody conflict.
That was why he intended to face them alone. He didn't want his soldiers to suffer heavy losses over a Sarkaz internal affair. It wasn't that he doubted the will or strength of the Shieldguards; he knew them too well, which was exactly why he worried.
Jeanne understood his concerns deeply. She was well aware that those Sarkaz would be much harder to deal with than any foes they had faced before. Putting everything else aside, their raw combat power was among the highest on the continent. There was a reason so many chose Sarkaz mercenaries; besides it being their only means of survival, they were simply that strong.
Jeanne thought for a moment and then asked: "How many people do you think they will send to find you?"
This was a key point for Jeanne—it determined whether she could handle this group of Sarkaz by herself.
"Not many. Even if they are... his most trusted... they will not exceed... one hundred," Patriot stated firmly.
He understood the current situation in Kazdel. Theresis wasn't exactly having an easy time. While this matter was important to him, he wouldn't abandon his primary power base just for this. Theresis was not a short-sighted man; Patriot knew the man he once fought alongside very well, even if they hadn't met in years.
Hearing this, Jeanne breathed a sigh of relief. If there were fewer than a hundred, she could handle them even without her dragons.
It wasn't that she couldn't fight more, but to end the battle in an instant, she would need to use her Noble Phantasm. Provided she intended to disable the enemy rather than just kill them all, she could guarantee a win against up to a hundred people at once. No matter how strong the opponents were, victory would be hers.
"Then there's no problem. We can just handle them together when the time comes. If it doesn't exceed a hundred people, I'm quite confident in our victory."
Jeanne's confident words didn't sound like a hollow boast. Looking at her expression, she truly believed she could handle a Sarkaz squad. If anyone else had said this to Patriot, he would have assumed they were just trying to comfort him. But with Jeanne, it was different. This girl never lied.
Furthermore, he had felt how terrifying the Holy Water was. Whether those people could even walk back out of Ursus after being doused in it was a real question.
"And don't think about facing them alone. Do you really think everyone will just stand by and watch once they find out?"
What Jeanne didn't say was that she was also inextricably linked to this. If she really thought about it, she was the one who had inadvertently put Patriot in this position. If it weren't for the mess she had stirred up, the people of Kazdel likely wouldn't have come looking for a man who had long since left his homeland.
In a way, she had dragged everyone into this event, even if it wasn't her intention. If everyone suffered catastrophic losses because of this, Jeanne knew she wouldn't be able to forgive herself.
It seemed she should find a way to teach the soldiers some methods for dealing with demons. Once they learned, even if they stopped being soldiers one day, they could probably set up a stall and make a living as exorcists!
And it wouldn't even be a scam, because the things she taught could actually drive away evil. It was a good skill to have. Her "craft" was specifically for purging malevolent beings—it even worked on ghosts, though she wasn't sure if ghosts actually existed on Terra.
The only pity was that Patriot and the other Sarkaz probably couldn't learn these things. It wasn't discrimination; it was a matter of safety. The idea of a demon joining a church to become a priest was a nice story, but such things were rare for a reason. Jeanne wasn't sure if learning holy arts would have a terrible physical effect on her Sarkaz companions. After all, demons were the textbook definition of "evil creatures" in her world, generations of them.
"Is that so... then I am... at ease. For the time being... if you need anything... go directly... to the Shieldguards."
Patriot felt much more relaxed. It seemed he didn't need to worry about this for a while; he trusted Jeanne's ability to get things done. His most important task now was to recover. To face the enemy in this state would make him a liability.
"Then get some rest. Remember not to overthink things. The spirit recovers much slower than the body. Don't have any big emotional swings or get impatient."
Before leaving, Jeanne gave him one last worried instruction. She had noticed long ago that this old man was far more stubborn than he looked. He might agree now, but the moment she left, he'd probably start handling paperwork or taking the Shieldguards out for patrol and training. Sometimes his stubbornness was terrifying—no wonder Yelena called him a "Stubborn Old Fool."
When Jeanne stepped out, the Shieldguards immediately swarmed her to ask about Patriot's condition, with several wanting to go in and visit.
"The old gentleman has no major physical issues, but his spirit needs quiet rest. Don't crowd around here. Go back to whatever you were supposed to be doing!"
Jeanne's voice was almost drowned out by the crowd. She had no choice but to shout to get them to disperse. Hearing this, the men didn't disturb Patriot and left. They weren't helpless without him, and they soon began their daily routines.