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73.12% A Nascent Kaleidoscope. / Chapter 430: Chapter 389

Chapter 430: Chapter 389

"Repeat what you just said about Jeanne D Arc." I demanded.

He took an unconscious step back and I didn't even realize I was nearly in his face. "The Dragon Witch. After she was burned at the stake, they say she was raised from the fires of purgatory itself, wielding the cursed flames as her own. The ones responsible for her death, and even the King himself were all burned in her unholy wrath!"

"…..ridiculous." I muttered after understanding his words. "Jeanne D'Arc going on a murder spree?" Just saying it out loud was absurd.

"I'm just telling you what I heard." The man grunted. "And then the flying beasts appeared. And ya just have to look up to the sky to see that something is wrong."

Right, from his perspective, I supposed they would believe such a rumor just from the fact that Wyverns appeared that coincided with that stupid rumor. Not to mention the Ring of Light is noticeable to everyone so that's not helping matters.

Absolutely no way this was Jeanne. The Jeanne I knew was….beyond reproach. Those Angels I met at the Peace conference were less in my eyes in comparison to her.

I was confident that she would emerge from the Corrupted Grail's Mud of Rin's Grail War untainted if she were exposed.

But, it wouldn't do any good for me to get upset over this. There was obviously something wrong, beyond the obvious of this place being a singularity. I would just have to figure out the details myself.

"Shouldn't there have been a treaty signed between the French and English at this point?" I started pacing back and forth, thinking aloud.

At this point in history, I can't say it has overtly significant. It's obviously important enough that a singularity formed a distortion, but compared to other events in the past, it's not very substantial in weight. The only notable occurrence that had ramifications beyond the borders is the ending of the Hundred Year war through an agreement signed by both the English and French Kings.

"The English King bastard died as well." The man spit out. "Good riddance I say. Only good thing the Witch did was scare off them English armies from the lands. If she didn't start burning down cities too then everything woulda been fine."

"….right." I took a moment to process that bit of information as well.

Just going by the process of events, History is entirely fucked up due to this sequence. The English Armies would return, the next heir would swear vengeance and I wouldn't be surprised if the Church joined in due to their people being burned in revenge.

That's not even considering the fact that there are god damn Wyverns flying around in mass enough that people are calling her 'The Dragon Witch'. How long before the Clock Tower of this time period would get involved?

No wonder this was a point of Singularity in the Timeline.

What a damn mess.

At least everything wasn't literally on fire like Fuyuki.

"You said this Witch was burning down Cities. Can you tell me about that?"

He grunted with a nod. "Heard Orleans was burned down by the Witch and she raised a Castle on the ashes. Lyon too, got a couple youngins from over there and they said that the city was mostly destroyed and burned by the witch. And something about a Knight protecting them or something." He said gruffly. "Nonsense if you ask me. Maybe other places too, but we didn't stay to wait. As soon as those monsters appeared, we packed up and ran."

I looked back towards the remainder of the caravan. Probably a dozen or so carts pulled with horses, oxes or donkeys. A lot of them looked held together only by prayers at merely a glance.

"Where are you all going then? If France is suffering at the hands of this Witch with…Dragons that can fly across the land faster than people can flee. Where will you go to escape her?"

He leaned on his spear. "North." He said simply. "Lots O' people saying that the Witch won't go up North, Eastwards that is. They say that the Duchy of Lorraine is safe from her, that for some reason she can't step foot on the land. We are headed for Nancy, the capital city of the Duchy."

"Why did she leave it untouched?" I furrowed my brow. "If she was burning down most of France, from what you said." It didn't make sense. What was there that would keep this supposed Jeanne D Arc at bay? The Holy Roman Empire? Did they set up there and are pushing back against the 'Dragon Witch' and using some of the Church's secret weapons?

They have plenty of weapons stored away that even I would be fearful of.

"Ah don't know myself." He shrugged, not giving it too much thought it seems. "You're welcome to come along. I'd be a shit man if I didn't offer our saviors a ride. "Side's, I wouldn't turn down the extra help if you wantin to come along. We be almost to the borders of what's safe. Once we get to the nearby Village, we'll gather some more supplies to make the Journey further North. But don't worry, they say the Wyverns don't dare to come close."

[Master?] Raikou's voice entered my head through our Servant link. [Do you wish to follow? It seems we have an immediate destination if you want to find the source of the conflict here. However, there is something unsettling going on.]

[Let's….get our bearings first. After what happened before, the last thing I want to do is rush into anything at the moment.] I sent back through our link.

"I'll gladly take you up on your offer." I held out my hand and he happily shook it. It seems like he really appreciated the extra help after dealing with those Wyverns. "What's the name of the place we're stopping?" Maybe I could inquire about some things there if they got a bunch of other people traveling through like them.

"Err, what was the name?" He scratched his head. "Damn kids said they got some family there and suggested we stop to refill supplies. D-dum, do…."

I stiffened in realization. "Domrémy?" I offered.

"Ah, that's the one!" He smiled happily.

[Master, why did you react that way after hearing that? Does the name mean something to you?] Raikou asked.

I supposed most people wouldn't know, especially the peasants of this era as it only got popularized long after her death.

[It's the place of Jeanne's birth…and where her family should still be living.]

"Well, I wouldn't want to keep everyone." I looked up to the sky. There were a few figures miles away in the distance, by the size this far away, I could guess they were more Wyverns, but they didn't seem to be coming our way. "Let's not wait for more of those monsters to come along."

"I'll make sure the others are ready and we will get goin. Should make it there before nightfall." He nodded in appreciation. "You two can get on my cart, I'll take ya there myself." He walked over, patting a nearby cart full of random items tied to it and a horse that looked rather tired.

I climbed into the back without argument and Raikou soon followed.

Raikou probably sensed my annoyance and discomfort because she pulled me down to lean on her shoulder while she took my hand affectionately.

By the sounds of it either Chaldea was keeping a low profile, or they hadn't arrived in the Singularity yet. I would check out this village and see the situation for myself before planning our next move.

[***]

Thankfully, we didn't have to deal with any more problems for the evening. The several hour ride was long and rough, but we finally arrived at what looked like the village.

It was very different seeing it in this era compared to when I took Jeanne to visit her hometown. They called it a village, but perhaps a town might be appropriate.

Atleast, it was bustling enough that it could be mistaken for one. But there also appeared to be a noticeable amount of refugees and travelers camped up in the area.

Not only that, but there was a large wooden wall erected around the perimeter. The wood itself looked like it had just been cut apart from the nearby forestry. And there were plenty of people being denied entry by some armed guards.

"Shoulda known something like this would've happened." The old man driving the cart let out an annoyed grunt. "Unlikely we getting any help here."

"You should be good from this point regardless, right?" I asked.

"Mmm, without those monsters overhead, we should be fine." He nodded. "We can figure out it from here if you're settling down here."

"Thanks for the ride." I nodded towards him in thanks, stepping off the cart. I held out my hand, helping Raikou off a moment later.

"I should be thanking you, lad." He gave a good natured smile. "We'll hunker down for the night at the least. If ya change your mind, I'd be happy to have ya."

I thanked him again, but this was enough.

Besides, the people with him were keeping a wary distance from us the entire time. Was pretty obvious that they didn't trust us even after saving them.

Oh well, not much you can do. People in this era were very superstitious and ignorant about a lot of things. No fault of their own, but simply the way things were.

Before the crowd could stare, and I was more than aware that we stood out, especially Raikou, I weaved an illusion around us.

"Let us in!"

"You can't keep us out here!"

"I just wanna buy some food, we're starving out here!"

Raikou and I snuck up on the people crowding around the immediate entrance to the Village where there were armed guards holding their weapons tightly, staring at the aggravated people.

"The village is full, we can't take anyone else in." One of them declared.

"Lies!" Someone from the crowd shouted and they started all throwing insults and threats towards the Guards, but no one was brave enough to start anything.

We just sidestepped the ones standing up front and walked into the Village.

It was about the same as we could see from the outside. After walking a few minutes, it was as that Guard said, pretty damn crammed full of people. Plenty of which were just sitting around setting up camp for the foreseeable future. Camping up against the side of buildings, pitching make-shift tents to hide from the elements. Children covered in dirt and grime while their parents are just happy that they're all alive.

Refugees.

Made it really sink in how bad things were around here.

Damn my bleeding heart….

They couldn't see me, but I didn't care to deal with the slew of thanks or gratitude. I began taking out items from within my Ring, foodstuffs that I had extras of, and placed them next to families with children or those looking like they were in need.

This was Jeanne's home, the least I could do was honor her memory by doing something like this.

Raikou didn't say anything, merely smiling and mimicking my actions, going around to place food and water near people who were truly in need right now.

There were way too many people here, we barely helped even a fraction that we merely saw right in front of us, but once the majority of the families in our immediate vicinity had something to fill their bellies, it was enough.

"Let's go Raikou." I whispered towards my Servant.

"Yes, Master!" Raikou grabbed my arm as we made our way further through the streets which was partly laid with stones, partly muddy from a recent rainfall.

I vaguely recalled the direction her house was in from being there before. It was a bit up the hill that the Village was situated along.

"Can you astralize for me?" I whispered again.

"Yes, Master." Raikou followed my orders, disappearing into her Spiritual state.

I dropped my own Illusion after turning onto a street so that people could see my approach. I wanted to gauge my surroundings and possibly interact with some people. Simply appearing in front of them would be a formula for disaster when there's a supposed Witch running around.

I glanced around and the further I went, the more things turned…weird.

People did not hold back their stares and watched me intently. I knew it was sort of getting dark out with the sun setting, but the way they were watching me made me think something else was going on. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a few whispering to others and they glanced at me before a few of their number scurried off down between a few houses and disappeared.

More and more seemed to be there, watching me, peeking out of the nearby homes, and just staring blatantly.

And they were not normal peasants. I could see the scars, the calluses on their hands, and the overall demeanor of trained soldiers. Not to mention the barely hidden weapons under their shirts.

I continued walking up the hill and I sensed the people from before slowly following In a group, just out of my peripheral view. I ignored it, pretending that I hadn't noticed their presence as the building in question came into view.

It was nearly identical to every other home nearby, and I wouldn't have been able to pick it out had I not been here in the future.

There was the same tree out front, the same stone decorations that weathered the ages looking much more clean and well kept in comparison to my time, but it was nearly identical.

I walked up and knocked on the door. Barely once or twice and the door was pulled open with a fury and there was a man there, looking right pissed and practically ready for a fight. "What do you want?" He demanded. I could see the faint outline of a dagger under his shirt as well.

"I'm looking for a family that lives here. The father's name should be Jacques, and the mother should be Isabella –"

"Never heard of them." He interrupted me. "Who are you?" His eyes narrowed.

"…..I'm friends with their daughter." I ignored his obvious provocation and continued as I was. "I'm hoping that I can meet –"

"He said they don't live here!" Another voice sounded from behind him and a couple more men walked forward behind the one who answered the door. Their faces were hardened from years of fighting, along with noticeable wounds. One was missing a leg, another an arm. The one who originally answered, well, his pupil was a pale white with a scar running along the length of his head.

"Right then." I took a deep breath. "If I don't receive an answer in the next few breaths, I'm going to assume the worst. Which is not something you want. So please answer my question." I would not hold back if I found out that these people were…. bandits and did something to Jeanne's family.

She may be a Saint, but I sure as hell was not. She could choose to forgive them or not after their last moments on this earth were as excruciating as possible.

"Didn't you hear what I said, boy?" He reached under his shirt, pulling his knife out.

"If that's your answer." I smiled politely then lashed out with my leg, sending him flying into the house from the threshold.

The other two reacted pretty well for mundane humans. However, they were severely outmatched. Before they could draw their blades, I already pushed them back, letting them slide across the ground, joining their friend.

I grabbed one of the knives that were discarded in the heat of the moment and held it to the neck of the closest man. "Let me be clear, If I found out you did anything to the family that lives here, you will beg me for the hell you're doomed to."

"Please stop." I paused, hearing a gentle and warm voice to the side. A woman stood there, in a green and white dress with a brown veil keeping her hair back. "There's been a misunderstanding."

However, those were secondary to her actual looks.

"…..you look just like her." I said softly.

"Madame!" One of the men climbed to his feat, looking ready to attack me. I side eyed him, but my focus was still on the woman.

"Philippe, please stop as well." She looked at the man. "He doesn't mean me any harm." Her words seemed to reach them as they looked hesitant, but didn't immediately jump at me again.

[Master!] Raikou called out in alarm.

[I noticed, Raikou. Just….try to find them and keep watch if you can.] I replied, also noticing the fact that what was most likely a Servant appeared nearby.

"You must be Madame Romee." I ignored the death glares from them and continued to focus on the woman. "Jeanne spoke about you. It's an honor to meet her mother."

"You knew my Jeannette?" She smiled bitterly. "I apologize, I did not catch your name."

"How rude of me." I took a step forward and gently took her hand, placing my lips against the back of it in a gesture of respect. "Wilhelm Henry Schweinorg, at your service, Madame."

She seemed amused by my action. "Isabelle is fine. Come, I have tea brewing, you can tell me why you came all the way here and how you know my daughter."

"Madame, are you sure – "

"If he wished to harm me, he would have done so already." Jeanne's mom interrupted one of the men about to speak.

"….Just to double check, they're here as guests?" I eyed the suspicious men.

She cracked a smile, giggling softly. "They are worried that someone was going to harm me. They are all former comrades of my daughter who retired and came to settle down here."

Oh…that's awkward.

"I apologize for my actions; I assumed the worst." I bowed my head towards them in acknowledgement for my assumption.

They glanced between themselves and there was a noticeable amount of tension that eased up.

"Alright, I guess you have a point about everything." The one named Philippe scratched the back of his head. "You two go out and scatter everyone else, Tell them the Madame is fine."

The other two grumbled and hobbled out the door. I glanced around the corner and noticed just how large the crowd forming outside had become.

I was broken from my musing as the man slapped me on the back. "Apology accepted, boy. Now get over there, the Madame offered you tea and you're not going to spit on her hospitality."

"Philippe, be nice to our guest."

He grumbled but nearly dragged me to the table where she was set up, a warm cup already set out for me.

"Thank you for the tea." I politely expressed my gratitude while taking a sip. Fairly watered down and lacking much of the taste that I'm used to, but there was a certain warmness to it as well. "….if you don't mind me asking, what's going on with…." I glanced at the man hovering nearby, leaning against the wall, staring at me.

"They all seem to think an old woman like me is in need of protection." Isabella chuckled. "Truthfully, I don't think I'm worth all this trouble."

"Madame, any of the men outside would gladly lay down their lives to protect yours. None of us believe those rumors about this Dragon Witch. We all owe your daughter too much to allow even the chance of you getting harmed because of it." Phillipe responded.

"You all are former soldiers that served with Jeanne, weren't you?" I summarized.

He nodded proudly. "After hearin what happened in Orleans, we all gathered her to protect her family. It was the least we could do." He sighed, slumping his shoulders. "Suppose I should give an apology for the treatment too. We've had a cloaked stranger appear the other day, and they nearly slipped inside the Madam's home under our noses. We've been keeping a closer eye on the place for outsiders ever since. Assumed you were involved."

"It was understandable." I waved it off. But hearing about a 'stranger' and knowing there's a Servant nearby, well, two and two wasn't hard to put together. "Madame Isabelle, I apologize if my question comes off crass but….where is everyone else?"

"My husband took our children to his Great Aunt's home further north." She looked down at her tea sadly. "After hearing that Jeannette died then everything that came after…. we couldn't simply leave under the hope that our daughter wasn't truly gone. We decided that he would take the children to safety and then he would come back and we would wait to see if our daughter came home."

Phillipe looked away, obviously not believing she would.

And I knew the truth as well.

And the look on her face, well, she knew she was holding out for a miracle.

"I'm sorry for your loss." I said quietly. "She was an amazing young woman. She called me a friend once, and that's a memory I'll always cherish."

"Thank you, your words were very kind." She smiled warmly, despite the sorrowful topic. "I was always worried that Jeannette was having troubles while fighting, but to hear she had friends makes me very happy."

I don't know how she's holding herself together so well. I've barely been a dad for months at this point, and I would be an uncontrollable mess if I found out that Kunou passed away.

[Master, I found the Servant.] Raikou called out.

[Can you see them? Do you recognize them at all?] I asked back.

[They are covered with a hood over their head, master.] Raikou stated.

I stood up from my seat. "I barged in and brought up some bad memories. Please allow me to offer up something as recompose. You said there was someone suspicious poking around? I'll go grab them right now."

At the very least, I wanted Jeanne's mom to not have to live like this.

I didn't wait for them to answer as I was already flying out the door. As soon as I crossed the threshold, I moved with a burst of Shunpo hopping along the nearby rooftops until I could catch up to Raikou who was on the move.

Apparently, this other Servant noticed something was wrong and was running away. Why they didn't Astralize, I didn't know, but I wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.

It didn't take long for me to catch up, I could see the figure that Raikou was trailing as they weaved between houses.

They weren't fast, relatively speaking. As far as Servant parameters go, I felt like they were near the lowest end as I was easily gaining on them without pushing too hard.

I eventually jumped off a building and summoned up Mirage, halfheartedly swinging it downwards at them. I merely wanted to disrupt their attempt at fleeing rather than go for a kill. They swung their body around and materialized a weapon into their hand.]

My eyes widened because I recognized it.

A long pole with a point at the end, but it wasn't a spear. It was still furled, but the coloring of it was something I wouldn't forget.

A Banner.

I could get somewhat of a look at her face now, covered by the shroud and hidden under the moonlight.

Blonde hair peeked out from under the hood, and a familiar pair of blue eyes stared back at me.

"Jeanne?"

[***]

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Chapter 431: Chapter 390

She hesitated, looking surprised. "Who are you?"

I felt my heart drop hearing that. I knew it had been a long shot, generally Servants don't recall their memories from previous Grail Wars for many different reasons. There are always exceptions, and Rulers Can fall into the category.

"Master." Raikou returned to my side and Jeanne stepped back warily.

"A Servant." She whispered. "I see, you're her master. Attacking the overseer for the Grail War is against the rules. If you continue, I will have to use my authority to stop you." She held up her Banner, ready to fight.

"I think it's a misunderstanding." I put my hands up to soothe her hesitation. "Saber and I were just…surprised by another Servant."

[Master.] Raikou whispered through our link.

I knew what she wanted to say.

Jeanne didn't even bat an eye when I called Raikou 'Saber' when her Class was still 'Berserker'.

She slowly lowered her banner. "Very well….I can understand your wariness."

"Well, now that this is settled. I think I'll go back and spend time with that wonderful woman I just met. What was her name again, Isabelle?"

"W-wait, what are you saying!?" Jeanne immediately became flustered. "Y-you can't!"

She never acknowledged that I called out her true name, was she going to try and play that she wasn't Jeanne D Arc?

Adorable.

"Why not?" I tilted my head, acting confused. "Do you have some sort of relationship with that woman? How convenient that I may have happened upon Ruler's living relatives."

"I have no idea who they are! But...T-they are civilians!" She seemed to blurt out some half-assed reasoning with the worst lie I've ever heard in my life. "You can't involve them in any Grail War!"

Why did she think there's a Grail War going on?

Lots of questions here.

Regardless, there was something amiss and there was the perfect way to figure it out.

"Sorry, I can't do that." I denied.

"…how come?" She looked at me.

"Simply, I think I've fallen in love." I dramatically place a hand over my heart. "That warm and gentle woman just swept me off my feet. She was so sad and depressed over her Daughter's death, I simply can't leave her alone."

"She's married! You can't court a married woman!" Jeanne practically screeched.

"I assure you, I am quite capable. A romantic dinner, whispering sweet nothings into her ear, giving her all the attention she deserves. I'll make sure to treat her like the queen she is. I've been told I'm very charming."

Raikou was silent, but her expression practically screamed amusement.

"S-she has children! She's...she's old!" Jeanne whined.

"I'll let you in on a little secret." I gestured for her to lean in. "I like older women."

"Naaaah!" She pushed me away, letting out some weird noises.

I missed this so much.

"Tell me, as a Servant, do you know the term 'Milf'?" I asked.

A look of horror that flashed across her face informed me that she did in fact know what that word meant.

I just couldn't help myself.

I think it was my Devil nature.

But enough fooling around, I wanted to verify something. "You know what? I changed my mind."

"Eh!?" She looked a mite happy. "You're going to leave Mo – the woman alone!?"

"No, not that." I dismissively waved my hand. "I still want to take your mom to pound town."

"P-pound –" She paused, letting the words sink in as her face turned a bright red. "Y-you can't just say things like that!!"

I ignored her outburst. "I meant I changed my mind about fighting you. I decided that I want you to punish me for breaking the rules."

"…what?" She blinked in confusion.

"Go ahead, use your Authority as a Ruler. Use your command Seals, force me to stop."

"Why would you want that!?"

"I like being punished." I winked.

"Ehhh!?"

"Don't kink shame."

"S-stop!"

"Raikou, prepare to attack Ruler."

"With pleasure." Raikou smiled happily.

"I-I'll really do it!"

"I'm waiting." I held my arms out.

"Don't test me!"

'I'm waiting."

"If you try to do anything I'll…..I'll force your Servant to stop!"

"I'm waiting." I continued to hold my arms out.

"….."

"..."

"….please don't attack me." She said quietly.

"You can't use any of your Ruler Authorities, can you?"

"N-no…" She looked away.

"Again, seriously? Why is there always something wrong with your summoning?" I let out an exasperated sigh. "First time you needed a vessel, now you can't even use the abilities of a Ruler? What's next, are you going to be summoned without any Noble Phantasms?"

"Again?" She looked at me in confusion once more, her brow furrowed. "Do….you know me?"

I felt another twinge of pain in my heart hearing that again.

"In another time and place. We participated in a Grail War, you were the Ruler then as well." I couldn't help but smile as I reminisced. "Our time together was short, but in that period, I grew to admire you greatly. And at the end, I like to think that we were good friends."

"….I'm sorry, I don't recall. I have no memories of participating in any other Grail Wars. And to be honest, my head has been muddled ever since I've been summoned." She replied gently.

"It's alright, I knew it was a long shot."

"Perhaps…..something happened and my memories were lost? It's possible that if I fix what happened…..it might let me recall?"

That was just like her to try and sooth me while I was obviously distraught.

"We should – " I felt a vibration within my Ring, making any more words die in my mouth.

{Call upon the spear.} Musū Tengai spoke from within my soul. {It's reacting to something.}

The Spear was pushing against the folded space, and I allowed it to exit by its own will. With a bright light, the Holy Spear of Longinus shot out and floated between us.

Jeanne was enthralled by it, she stared without blinking.

She reached for it as if in a trance.

The Holy Light enveloped her, illuminating the night sky. It kicked up a huge whirlwind with her at the epicenter, and I could see the Holy Light infusing into her Servant Container. I didn't interrupted, but the phenomena only lasted a few more moments before the Light began to recede.

Jeanne held the spear, looking lost. Her eyes refocused and they landed on the Spear then back to me. "Wilhelm!?"

I needed no other proof, within a breath, I already wrapped up the Saint in my arms. "Welcome back, Jeanne."

"I'm back." She spoke softly, returning the hug. "…..Will?"

"Yes?"

"….why is your hand on my butt?"

"Just….making sure it's the real you."

"H-how would that confirm my identity!?" She sputtered.

"I'm genuinely surprised you had the foresight to ask me that."

"What's that supposed to mean!?"

"Oh I don't know." I rolled my eyes, releasing her from my arms. I cleared my throat almost comically. "Oh yes, that woman that looks exactly like you obviously has no connection whatsoever."

"I panicked!" She squeaked out. "Some strange person was around my mom, what was I supposed to say!? I can't interfere if the rules aren't broken!"

"So you would have to watch me while I put the moves on your mom?" I questioned.

"Stay away from my mom!" She whined, swinging around the spear wildly.

"Oh no, look everyone, the Ruler Servant is attacking me. Breaking the rules!" I raised my voice.

"NEHHHH!" She cried out, swinging the spear at me still.

"Raikou, subdue her."

"B-Berserker?" Jeanne squeaked as my Server grabbed Jeanne and pulled her into her own hug.

"Hello again." Raikou cheerfully greeted the Saint. It's funny, even with her Madness before, she had a good opinion of Jeanne. That should tell anyone what kind of person Jeanne was.

"You should feel honored." I pat the back of Jeanne's head that was buried firmly between Raikou's large breasts. "Not many people get this kind of service from Raikou."

"Ufufu." Raikou giggled at the squirming Jeanne.

I did take the opportunity to retrieve my Spear. I felt a little threatened letting Jeanne have it while her mom was the subject of as much teasing I could.

Raikou did let the Ruler go a moment or two later. Jeanne puffed up in embarrassment but Raikou and I just shared a laugh.

"Berserker…" Jeanne eyed my Servant and her eyes widened. "My True Name Discernment is back!" She cheered. "Wait, what happened to you!? Your Mad Enhancement it's – "

"Gone?" Raikou finished for her. "Master and Grandfather removed it after the War. I am no longer polluted by those intrusive thoughts." Her gaze towards Jeanne was filled with warmness. "Thank you for putting up with me when I was not clear headed."

This time, Raikou gave her a real hug. The Saintess happily accepted the apology and intent behind it.

"And your class…it's strange. It reminds me of that Assassin that had dual classes."

"We altered her Saint Graph a bit while snipping away the Mad Enhancement." I replied. "And it seems like you're back to normal now?"

"Yes." She beamed. "I don't have access to any command seals, but my Parameters returned to normal, my memories returned and my other abilities as a Ruler are back as well!"

"Awesome, so what's going on?"

"…..I don't know." She said sheepishly. "I was kind of messed up, so I was just working off the assumption that a Grail War was going on because I can sort of sense a Grail somewhere…"

"Really? Your first thought was a Grail War?"

"Why else would I be summoned?" She huffed cutely.

I pointed upward and she followed my gaze. "Did that big ring in the sky not tip you off that something was wrong?"

"….It did give me concern, but I couldn't do anything about it and I was already confused about my summoning." She pouted. "Do you know what that ring of light is? Does it have anything to do with what's going on?"

"….probably, but it's a bit of a long story. What exactly do you know about the situation?"

"I was summoned, I remember that, but then something happened and someone…..I think someone used the Grail to take part of my Saint Graph. Other than that, I've just been stumbling around. I heard about this….Dragon Witch and people are calling her me….."

"They say that Jeanne D Arc was touched by the Devil and turned into a witch…..is that what happened, Jeanne?"

"T-that's nonsense."

"Right, because Jeanne D Arc wouldn't consort with heinous Devils!"

"Stop teasing me!" She puffed up.

"I'm technically a Dragon too…"

"Stopppp."

"Just saying." I truly missed this. "But to summarize for now, this is a Singularity. A….point in time that was altered off the correct path. Usually the Counter Force would purge something like this with prejudice, but I'm guessing that the Holy Grail you sensed is propping it up. We need to retrieve the Grail and stop whoever is causing the mess and fix things."

"Fix things? Will everything return to normal?" She asked hopefully.

"I won't lie and say it'll be perfect. But the majority of the damage should be undone. The concern of the Greater World is that the natural course of history isn't altered too much."

Unfortunately, in the grand scheme of things, the deaths of some thousands of random people during this period wouldn't amount to much….

But seeing her face brighten up, I kept that bit of information to myself.

"For a self described heinous Devil, you're very kind, Wilhelm." She smiled brightly.

'Sure, keep telling yourself that." I rolled my eyes.

"Didn't you say you admired me?" She stepped up, smiling right in my face. "And that we were friends?"

"You probably heard wrong. Considering how bad you tried to threaten me with your supposed 'authority', I wouldn't be surprised if you were hallucinating."

"Nope! I heard it!"

"Stupid spear…." I grumbled. It waited until after I said that to do whatever it did to fix Jeanne. Speaking of. "How were you fixed, exactly?"

"I don't know." She tilted her head. "There was a bright light and a warm voice and I felt memories flood back and…." Her eyes widened. "The Spear! The Lord spoke to me. He must have fixed me too. It would be easy for the Lord to fix my Saint Graph."

"….sure, let's go with that." Should I tell her that God was dead back home and I had his ghost in my Spear? "Big G doing something proactive for once, I guess."

"Don't be disrespectful!" She puffed up again.

"How am I being disrespectful?! He's technically my many times great grandfather, y'know."

"You know what you were doing." She poked my chest. "Be nice."

"Yeah yeah." I rolled my eyes once more. "I was actually invited to become an Angel."

"….what?" She blinked.

"The Archangel Michael, he invited me to join the Heavenly Host and become an Angel."

"I don't believe you." She crossed her arms with a huff. "You're teasing me again."

"It's true!" I quickly defended myself. "Raikou, tell her."

Raikou looked away.

"I knew it!" Jeanne exclaimed. "Lies are not nice, Wilhelm!"

"Says the Saintess who tried to lie to me face." I countered.

"I didn't lie!"

"And there's another one."

"Lalalalala, I can't hear you." Jeanne covered her ears.

"Also, why do you still look like you're using that girl as a Vessel again?"

"What do you mean?" Jeanne tilted her head, forgoing ignoring me. "I told you before that the reason she was able to host me was because of how similar we were, even down to our looks."

"Yes, but you said your chest was smaller, but it's the same size now." I pointed out.

"Wah!? How would you know that!" She demanded.

"Do you think I don't know your sizes?" I gave her a look like she was stupid.

"Don't just admit that so blatantly!"

"Do you still have that school uniform? I missed those booty shorts of yours." I half heartedly joked. But then I noticed her go stiff and look away again. "...you do don't you?"

"I don't know why it's there! After getting fixed, I can dismiss my Servant clothing and I'll be in that School Uniform again." She whined.

"I take back everything I've said about Big G." I put my hands together and silently sent him a prayer as thanks.

If I had to guess, I think the last time that Jeanne held the Spear, he basically did the equivalent of snapshotting her Saint Graph and then pasted it back onto her as she is now, fixing all the issues, but a few other things came along with it.

That raised quite a few questions about the nature of the consciousness inside the Spear. And also about what happened when the one inside the spear sort of….linked up with its counterpart back during the Grail War.

I felt a poke at my cheek again And Jeanne was currently staring at me. "You were staring off there. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I just got lost in thought. I was imagining your mom in that School Uniform."

She proceeded to pinch my cheeks with a huff. "…..you're not really going to try and…..with my mom, are you?"

I put the teasing to the side for now and I pulled her into another hug. "Jeanne, I'm many things, but a home wrecker is not one of them. Ignoring everything else, your mom is happily married and I wouldn't ruin that."

She sighed happily. "Thank you, Wilhelm."

"For what? Are you thanking me for not banging your mom?"

She let out an exasperated laugh. "For still thinking of me as a friend and remembering me."

"You're the Saintess that accepted a Half-Devil like me as your friend." I pointed out.

"I don't care about you being a half-Devil. I care that Wilhelm is a kind and wonderful person and I cherish you as a friend." She smiled warmly.

…..what a weird Saintess, not caring that I'm the antithesis to her beliefs.

"Come on, let's go back to your mom. I said I would catch the suspicious person rummaging around. I assume that was you and you were looking for the opportunity to check up on her. With everything going on, it must have been hard."

"….I can't."

"…pardon?" I blinked.

"I'm dead, Wilhelm. It's not proper."

"You're going to need to explain this to me."

"I'm more than aware of what year it is, and the date. I died very recently. My parents…my family are already mourning. If I just appeared in front of them, what do I say? They wouldn't understand any of this. It's best that they believe I died how History remembers it and move on. I heard about the Dragon Witch and was just worried about them… I never intended to show myself. I would have left soon had I not noticed you and your Servant approach mother."

I took a moment to process what she said. To try to understand her reasoning and her logic. And I came to a simple conclusion. "Are you an idiot?" I flicked her forehead.

"Oww?!" She squeaked out in surprise.

"Raikou." I called out to my Servant who had been very gracious in allowing me this uninterrupted reunion with my long lost friend. "Is she being stupid?"

"It appears so, Master."

"W-what do you mean?!" She looked confused.

"It's weird because I can't get mad at you. I know you're doing it because you believe this is the best way." If it were anyone else, I would have smacked them silly already. "Jeanne, in trying to be kind to them, you're instead being unbelievably cruel"

"…..what are you saying?"

I put my hands on her shoulders. "I would have given nearly anything to see my Mom again after she passed. To have some kind of closure so that I didn't stumble through after years of depression and sadness."

"B-but, if I go back and they see me, it'll just make it worse. It's best that they continue grieving –"

"You're saying that from the perspective of someone who has died. It's cruel of you, because you don't have to grieve; they were left behind and they have to deal with everything that comes after. Are you going to deny them the chance to say goodbye to their daughter that ran off to war at a young age? When was the last time they even saw you, Jeanne?"

To her credit, she did waver and there was a genuine desire to see her mom, she truly just didn't think it was for the best.

One of those times where someone so kind and thoughtful can get stuck in their own mentality and instead cause harm, even by accident and unknowingly to everyone involved.

"I can't, it's not proper. I'm dead, I can't just walk up to my mom after everything like it didn't happen. There are rules…." Her arguments were half-hearted at best.

"You know what? You're right." I acknowledged

"I am?" She questioned.

"There are rules. And I doubt a Servant has been put quite into your position where they get summoned within days of dying and hanging around their family members. But it's not proper for the Dead to influence their living relatives."

"So you understand my reluctance then, we – "

I held up my hand to silence her. "So, I'm going to take the decision out of your hands."

"What—"

"Raikou, get the rope."

[***]

A/N

If you want to read 7 chapters ahead or support me, visit my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m / astoryforone


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