章 3: Chapter 2 Confession
(Mael's POV)
Holding hands covered with mosaic by unknown means, I was walking with a girl named Jeanne d'Arc towards 'our' home.
(AH: No idea if Darc was her real name or d'Arc but I will use the later one as used in the show.)
That's right, after some uncertain events, I ended up living with Jeanne and her family.
"You know, as a second man of the house, I should be the one on the leading end, Jeanne." I smiled and then bypass her to walk from the front.
"Hehe, I know but my husband is charming as a noble. So as your wife I have to protect you~" She chuckled cutely but I swear I saw a little bit of smirk on lips with her ahoge swinging on her head.
And yes, she becomes silly when her ahoge comes out of her head.
"Ugg, p-please forget that…" I groaned as I shook my head.
Just as she said, I proposed to her in our first meeting.
I felt so stupid now that I started regaining my little bit of adult self-awareness. Well, I kinda have a thing for strong women and when I witnessed her strong will; I can't help but immediately fall for her.
"Hehe~, okay, okay, I will stop teasing you." She chuckled and rubbed my hair.
"Will you stop doing it?" I said dryly and shook my head. The word that I am 8 days younger than her has already reached her ears.
January 6th is hers and January 14th is mine.
(AN: Jan 14 is also my birth date.)
Anyway, we continue to stroll until we reached the entrance of our little village. Then came our little house we finished building a month ago. It was like a hut more than a proper house.
Entering the door, what came across our view were two individuals sitting on a straw mat with wooden plates and hot soup in a similar wooden pot.
"What took you so long, brats?" It was the voice of a man named, Jacques d'Arc, Jeanne's father and also my foster guardian.
"No need to answer, wash your hands and join us." Isabelle, Jeanne's mother spoke.
They were Jeanne's and my new family.
Jeanne and I nodded after washing our hands; we joined our parents for lunch.
"So Mael, when are you going to marry my daughter?" Amid our lunch, Isabelle asked me a sudden question.
*Cough *cough
I choked the food and then Jeanne gave me water.
"What?! You brat, you have to pass through me if you want to marry my daughter?!" And Jacques added more spice.
"Mother, father! Don't talk now!" Jeanne refuted with blushing cheeks. Can't believe she is the same girl teasing me to be her husband a while ago.
Although it could be taken as a joke, the fact that the marriage age of children started at age 15 in this era, it could be taken as a serious question as to when I will marry her.
I smiled and after a light cough, I began speaking like a gentleman, "Dear respected parents, I know you are concerned about mademoiselle Jeanne and me but worry not as I will soon join the order and after earning enough income to support all of you, I will then propose Jeanne for marriage."
Just as I finished speaking, I saw their hung-up faces before they started clapping.
The reason they were so startled was that I looked like a son of a noble no matter how you look at me.
Silver silky hair with blue ocean eyes and fair skin then adding my skills in literature, it was uncommon for anyone among commoners to look like me.
I was the only one in the house who could actually read and write French and even English, the enemy's language.
They even asked to help me to look for my parents or my territory but I didn't remember anything. I was raised by a nun in Church as long as I know until a tragedy occurred and I end up living with the d'Arc family.
However, the reality was that I had the experience of a modern-day human, except that I didn't remember anything major from my memories.
After lunch, Jacques summoned me outside.
"Can you tell me what is written inside?" He asked handing me a piece of paper since he couldn't read properly.
I nodded as he just wanted to hear the news related to the outside world.
When I began reading, drops of sweat popped on my forehead when I came to know another tragedy of France.
"We lost Paris…" I revealed news filled with tragedy.
Jacques shook his head and sighed. The loss of his homeland was visible on his face.
!!
We then heard a slight noise and our sight fell on a little girl peeping on us but before any of us could respond she ran away with tears in her eyes.
After nodding at the father of Jeanne, I ran after her.
Sniff*
I heard her soft cry and spotted her behind the house.
When I came near her and sat beside her, she hugged me with her teary eyes.
"Mael… what have we done to deserve all of this?" She asked while her face buried on my chest.
"Nothing, Jeanne," I said while caressing her head softly.
"Then is it because we are weak?"
"No Jeanne, you are strong, very strong." I smiled.
The main reason I confessed to her.
(Flashback)
*Huff *Huff
It was the time a month before I was adopted by the d'Arc family.
After running just 30 meters from my hometown, I was grounded with my breath so heavy that I couldn't even stand up let alone run away more.
"Guess… this is it then…" I sighed with a helpless smile.
My hometown was just burned down by Burgundians. The priest of the church where I was living was killed and many children were either taken away as slaves or killed in the mishap.
(AN: Burgundians were French natives but they were helping Britain to take over France at that time.)
I was lucky enough to escape from them since I ran opposite to the direction to rest and was able to evade the assault somehow but I knew that I would soon also be taken as a slave.
Reason? My stamina just ran out. I don't know what the actual stamina of 12 years old kid has but I am pretty sure that I stand last on the list.
Although I was a healthy kid, my stamina was just worst. I was feeling like an elephant was standing on me since I couldn't even move a finger. The only thing I could do is to wait to recover stamina to resume my escape and pray to not get captured from the chasers.
Pouring oil to fire, I had also sprained my ankle.
I was in the middle of my anguish to become a slave soon when I heard a soft voice.
"H-hey, what are you doing here?"
When I turned around my head, I saw a girl with short blond hair and amethyst-colored eyes wearing ragged clothes.
"Run… Run away from here…" I was barely able to spoke to warn the girl as I didn't want her to be taken away.
"W-what, why? What about you?" She asked innocently.
"Just run away. Why are you still standing here? You will be taken away!" I put force on my voice but was not loud enough to alert the chasers.
However, she didn't listen to a single word I said as she approached me and then lifted me on her back.
"What are you doing?! Let me go! I will slow you down!" I tried to shake my body as I refused to involve an innocent girl to be taken away.
However, I then saw tears in her eyes and an expression of the girl who also had lost everything.
"I have already lost my home and my siblings… I-I didn't want any more life to be taken away in front of me. Please let me help you. If we pray, I am sure that we will be safe…" She asked with teary eyes and a reassuring smile.
(AN: In origins, she had siblings but for the sake of plot, I killed them.)z
…Badum*
I didn't know when and how but my heart skipped a beat. Her resolve and her passion to help someone out of pure kindness without considering consequences made my view change towards humans.
"What is your name?" I asked her name as I was losing my consciousness.
"Jeanne d'Arc." She replied.
"Then Jeanne, My name is Mael. If we survive here, I will marry you and protect you as long as… I will live…." I proposed my marriage proposal before losing my consciousness.
After that, I was accepted by the d'Arc family.
After waking up, I discovered that her family town was also attacked by British forces along with Burgundians where she lost her siblings and her home. She was also traveling with her family to cross the river and enter southern France that was still not in the grasp of Britain.
(Flashback Ends)
Don't take me as a pedophile, I was just a child with 12 years old mentality and just like every kid, I also had (have) fantasy for strong girls and women so I just confessed like my dying wish.
But now that I have matured mentality, even though I can escape from France on my own, I was not shameless enough to abandon her and leave.
"Funnh…."
On my shoulders, Jeanne was sleeping soundly after crying for few minutes.
"I have to get strong…" I told myself while caressing her soft blond hair.
"But how…?" It was a tough question.
I was not just in any fantasy world where I had proper parents, living in a peaceful country, or had enough resources to follow Saitama's training scheme and get stronger.
France was in warring periods; the worst one in history at that. Food was like gold, there were still traces of Bubonic plague and civil war, all of this combined left France as a target to all kinds of trouble.
"Training comes first." But for the time being, I decided to train myself before joining the army and raise enough funds to leave France with Jeanne because only a miracle could save the country.
---
I am so sorry for abandoning updates. I am just living with my worst time. My finger got cut, my teeth and stomach is also hurting. It is just worst.
Hopefully, I will update regularly from now.
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