FATE: Target of Grand Master

After a hearty meal and a good night's rest, Xia Yan and the others were full of energy and ready to embark on their journey.

Since some people were unwilling to leave, Joan of Arc and Gilles left some food for them, but those who stayed broke their promise to Gilles and the others the night before and demanded that more food be left behind.

"Give us some more; most of those we leave behind are the elderly, women, and children."

Those who remained in the city elected an old woman as their representative.

"Grandma, we need food when we're marching and fighting, and we already agreed last night to split it 50/50. Today, when we were distributing the food, we gave you a little more than usual. We really don't have any more."

A senior officer in Jill's unit patiently negotiated with the old woman.

"You're lying. Since you're giving us extra food, it means you must be hiding even more. Don't you all agree?"

"Yes! You're definitely hiding even more behind our backs! We don't believe it!"

A burly man behind the old woman suddenly spoke up, stirring up the emotions of the people who remained in the city.

Despite the officers and soldiers in the army trying to persuade him, it had little effect.

As the commander of the troops, Jill's expression grew increasingly grim.

[At this point, I hope readers will remember our domain name 1110 ...

The restless crowd grew increasingly agitated, and their words became more and more unrestrained.

"robber!"

"fraud!"

They hurled insults at the soldiers who had fought to the death to protect them just yesterday, and they didn't even spare Joan of Arc.

When someone started bringing up the cliché of whether this Joan of Arc was actually the "Dragon Witch," Gilles finally lost her temper, rushed in front of the old woman, and shouted to the crowd behind her, "Quiet! Everyone, please be quiet!"

Upon seeing that it was the highest-ranking commander of the army, the restless crowd temporarily fell silent, wanting to hear what he had to say.

Jill said in a friendly tone, "Everyone has been talking at once, but your voices are all mixed up, so we can't hear you clearly. How about this, you send one of your representatives to speak?"

"Isn't this our representative?"

The burly man who had been stirring up trouble earlier pointed to the old woman at the front of the line and replied.

"The old lady is getting on in years and her speech is a bit unclear. You wouldn't want your demands to be incomplete and cause further misunderstandings, would you? After all, in this situation, no one knows when the enemy might attack."

Jill's words immediately sparked whispers among the crowd.

"You, yes, you, you'll be the representative. I'm sure you can explain it clearly, and you'll be a hero in the hearts of those who stay."

Jill pointed to the burly man who had started the trouble.

The burly man was initially hesitant, but upon hearing that he would become a hero in the hearts of those who remained, he began to consider what kind of rights he could gain among this group.

Before he knew it, he had walked up to Jill.

Jill patted the man on the shoulder and said warmly, "You arranged all of this today, didn't you?"

Then, before the man could react, she drew her sword and beheaded him.

Jill moved with lightning speed; only after the man's head had fallen to the ground did terrified screams erupt from the crowd.

"Murder! Murder!"

Jill lifted the man's head and said to the remaining crowd with a ferocious expression, "We only have so much food left for you. If any of you have any objections, you can talk to our swords."

After saying that, he threw the man's head into the center of the crowd and ordered all the soldiers that if anyone continued to cause trouble, they could draw their weapons.

The crowd, who had originally wanted to ask for more food, immediately scattered and fled, fearing they would be killed by the soldiers.

Gilles angrily sheathed his sword and ordered the troops to set off.

Joan of Arc, who had been watching the events unfold from a distance, sighed helplessly. She understood the significance of Gilles' actions and felt compassion for the people in the city.

"A small favor is appreciated, but a large one breeds resentment. I think the Marshal did nothing wrong; not everyone deserves to be saved."

Xia Yan, standing next to Joan of Arc, said.

Joan of Arc nodded: "I know Gilles's intention in leaving me so far away, but not everyone who stayed in the city was malicious. The old people and children do need food more; they just used the wrong methods."

Diao Yunshang interjected, "Treating kindness with kindness is called returning a favor, but treating evil with kindness is called aiding and abetting tyranny. Joan of Arc, when you consider the feelings of the people in the city, you should also consider the feelings of us on the expedition. We left half of the food for them when we outnumbered them, which is more than enough."

"Joan of Arc, you are a saint, but in the end, you are still human. I may not be qualified to say this, but as a messenger of God, do not presume to bear the responsibilities of God. Even you, as a saint, cannot bear such responsibilities, and this responsibility should not be borne by you."

Faced with Xia Yan and Diao Yunshang's advice, Joan of Arc had no answer.

Whether in her lifetime or now, Joan of Arc harbored no resentment towards the human race.

She loved the land called France and the people who lived there.

She always saw and believed in the good side of people's hearts, but deliberately ignored and disregarded the evil side.

However, this would lead to a one-sided and narrow understanding of people.

What makes a person noble is not that they are born perfect, but that they are willing to suppress the evil in their heart and uphold the good in their heart even after realizing their own imperfections.

Jeanne d'Arc always had a fear of being associated with Black Jeanne, afraid that she might actually have that side to herself. Inspired by Xia Yan and Diao Yunshang, Jeanne d'Arc realized that she was not perfect either.

If you have done something wrong in one aspect of yourself, then you should be the one to stop her.

"Xia Yan, Diao Yunshang, thank you. I will no longer be confused. This war will surely end in our victory."

Seeing the unprecedented determination in Joan of Arc's eyes, Xia Yan also smiled with relief.

"Let's go, we still have a long way to go."

Xia Yan and his group first headed south to the port city of Marseille. After eliminating the monsters in the vicinity, they left some troops behind for defense.

This was Gilles' strategy. As someone still living in this era, he wanted to leave the troops a way out. In case France was ultimately defeated by Jeanne Alter, they could at least evacuate by sea.

This seemed unnecessary to Xia Yan's three Masters, because if Jeanne Alter won, not only France, but all of humanity would be wiped out, but they did not stop Gillespie.

There's no point in arguing over this; what we need to do now is continue fighting in various locations until we lure out the Servants from Jeanne Alter's side.

After leaving Marseille, Xia Yan and the others traveled west to another small town, Bordeaux.

Like Marseille, Bordeaux, another port town, was not damaged too much. After replenishing its food and troops, Xia Yan and his group headed northeast to Thiers.

Along the way, Xia Yan and his companions ostentatiously swept through the monsters along the route, and finally encountered the situation Xia Yan had hoped for when they were less than two kilometers away from Thiel.

Jeanne Alter once again appeared before Xia Yan and the others, accompanied by her beloved dragon Fafnir and several Servants.

Dion, Sanson, Martha, Madland, and...

Xia Yan met a young woman dressed in an elegant gown. He recognized her as Marie Antoinette Alter.

Unexpectedly, the adorable cake ran to the other side and manifested here as an Alter spirit.