At this moment, inside Orléans, it had been occupied right at the beginning of the dragon disaster, becoming the lair of the resurrected Dragon Witch Jeanne.
In a dim study, a man wearing wide mage robes sat in a chair, clutching his head. His eyes were abnormally large, bulging out of their sockets, giving him a fish-like appearance. His expression was fierce and terrifying, and combined with those fish-like eyes, it was even more chilling.
"You deeply loved Jeanne. You revered her figure as she led the army to fight bravely, battling to protect her country. Recall it, that figure standing before you, facing the sun, as if draped in light."
A voice appeared by his ear, as if taking him back to the distant past, letting him see himself following Jeanne into battle, seeing that figure riding on horseback, running forward toward the sun, moving away.
Ah! That light draped over the Saint like a veil, so holy, so beautiful, so yearned for.
The originally painful and fierce expression had dissipated, replaced by longing and bewilderment.
"Think about it, why would such a beautiful and holy Saint encounter such injustice? Why would she be labeled a witch by those who are superficial, yet actually dirtier and more despicable, ultimately dying by fire?"
His vision blurred once again, the man seemed to see the blonde Saint tied to a stake, with piles of firewood doused in kerosene beneath her.
Those ignorant people roared with fanatical expressions, saying they wanted to burn this Saint to death! They continued to curse and slander her!
Those people who were even dirtier and more despicable in private, whom one could not bear to look at, were now high and mighty, judging a Saint, and even labeling her as a witch!
Ah! God! Why are you unwilling to cast even a sliver of mercy?! Why are you unwilling to send down even a trace of a miracle to protect this loyal believer who was praying to you even at the moment of death!
The man, whose face was full of longing and bewilderment, now became incomparably fierce again. His large, fish-like eyes were bloodshot. He gritted his teeth, and the sound of grinding teeth could be heard, showing that his anger and hatred were rising to an unprecedented level.
"Perhaps God does not exist at all, or perhaps God simply does not care."
That voice answered the doubts in his heart.
And this was the answer the man wanted to prove during his lifetime. From then on, he fell from a Marshal to a black magician. He committed murder and arson, did all kinds of evil, and even used children as experimental material. The sins he committed were terrifying fairy tales that could stop children from crying even in the future.
He was Bluebeard, and also the former Gilles de Rais.
He became that way just to prove whether God existed, and whether He cared about everything in the human world.
He committed countless crimes just to see if someone as heinous as him would suffer divine punishment.
In the end, he did not die from divine punishment, but was hanged by nobles who coveted his wealth and status on charges of heresy, and then his body was burned.
Perhaps this could also be considered divine punishment cast upon him by God?
However, if God really existed, why would He ignore him and let innocent children lose their lives one by one?
Why would He coldly watch him stir up a storm of blood in this era, letting countless Wyverns bite and devour many lives? If there really was a God, why didn't He stop him?
God, perhaps, simply does not care.
The seductive voice by his ear became clearer and clearer, and more and more in line with what he was thinking in his heart.
"The Jeanne you created now is just a fake. You know very well that the real Jeanne can ascend to the Throne of Heroes, because even you, with all your crimes, ascended to the Throne of Heroes due to your previous achievements. There is no reason why a Saint like Jeanne would not be qualified.
Now, in this Singularity, for the sake of self-preservation, Human Order will inevitably summon Heroic Spirits to stop you. So who will it summon? Who is the most suitable person to stop you?"
"Jeanne."
He answered with a dazed look in his eyes.
"Yes, that Saint Jeanne has returned to this land. She is to be used by others once again, and once again obey the orders of that God to stop you.
It is truly pathetic. She was clearly just an ordinary village girl enjoying her own life, yet she became a hero who saved France. In the end, she didn't even get to enjoy the treatment of a hero, becoming a witch spurned by the world, and even described in the future as a witch who made deals with demons, and even cursed as a harlot... Pathetic, truly pathetic!"
His emotions were easily stirred up by those unknown words.
"Such a pathetic Jeanne, always stepping onto the path of sacrificing herself without hesitation. Do you really want to see her continue to sacrifice herself?"
"No! I will never agree!"
"But you understand, she is not someone who will easily change her decision. You cannot shake her will."
"I... What should I do?"
"Think about it, Gilles de Rais, do you really have no fantasies about that Saint in your heart? Can that holy Saint really not show a smile meant for you alone?
To make someone who is willing to sacrifice everything for the great love in their heart change their mind, naturally, a 'small love' must appear that makes her unwilling to do so. Have you never thought about being with Jeanne?"
"I... No! I don't have that qualification, I am not worthy!"
"As a comrade-in-arms who has always accompanied Jeanne through battles and could entrust each other's backs, who else besides you has this qualification? Could it be some punk who suddenly popped up?"
"No! Jeanne is a Saint!"
"She is not anymore. She is regarded as a witch, a sorceress, a heretic, and even that so-called God ignored this believer, letting that loyal Saint die in the fire.
You have the Holy Grail in your hand, and knowledge from beyond this realm. Go find that Jeanne, and turn that Jeanne into a real Jeanne who belongs only to you.
It is the real living Jeanne who will smile at you, share the past with you, make food for you, and ask you to teach her how to read and write.
After all, the Saint is no longer a Saint. Don't you want to stain that noble and holy image in your heart with your own colors?!"
"...Yes, find her."
"Gilles de Rais, what feelings do you have for Jeanne now?"
"I love her! I want to possess her, I want to have her, I want her to become my own Saint!"
At this moment, Gilles de Rais was unprecedentedly frantic. Under the wide mage robes, countless tiny dark shadows were squirming, and the pair of huge, fish-like eyes were slowly retracting into their sockets. Finally, the eyes returned to normal, but the chaos and madness revealed in them were even greater than before.
He laughed, revealing his stark white teeth and bright red gums.
"Jeanne... Jeanne!!!"
The roar was filled with twisted desires and chaotic obsessions.
(To be continued.)
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)