Thanks for the invitation. I'm in Type-Moon, inheriting the legacy of Zi-O.

"Of course it's you," the man replied without hesitation. "Listen carefully, Joan of Arc. You've been burned at the stake! Not only that! You've been betrayed by everyone!" The man's face was contorted, as if he harbored a deep-seated hatred.

“That foolish king! Charles VII! He couldn’t even bear to pay the reparations! He just watched as you, who should have been a great hero, were sent to the stake!” The man’s hands trembled irregularly, and his teeth clenched so tightly they made a grinding sound.

“No one! Not a single person! Is there anyone willing to bravely stand up to save you! Why is such an unreasonable thing happening!” Jill looked at the statue of God placed high above the church.

The statue's eyes were tightly closed, as if it could not bear to see the suffering of its followers, or as if it itself was enduring the evil thoughts of the world.

"It's because of God!" Bluebeard seemed to have gone mad, summoning sea monsters that shattered the stone statue of the god. "This is the mockery of us by the god we worship! That's why we deny the gods. Isn't that right, Joan of Arc?"

Jeanne Alter seemed to have thought for a long time before finally revealing an enigmatic smile. "...Yes, that's right, Gilles."

"I have nothing left."

Looking at the shattered statue, Black Jeanne's hands also ignited with black flames, burning the stone statue to ashes. "My soldiers have deserted me. My people are fleeing everywhere. The king has betrayed me, and the bishop has executed me in the name of God."

Jeanne Alter looked utterly disgusted and contemptuous. She felt as if she'd been force-fed a mouthful of snake-infused herbal remedies on New Year's Day.

"In other words—I was wrong, no, everything was wrong. The one who was wrong was not the one I believed in, but the country that allowed me to 'exist.' Since that's the case, I must correct this mistake. Joan of Arc was wrong. How can I not obey their decision and reduce everything to nothingness? Because my act of saving the country was itself a fatal mistake."

Gilles, unusually, did not express agreement. "...Joan of Arc, please don't be so stubborn. This is just divine punishment. Your revenge is justified. Since you saved this country, you also have the right to destroy it. Isn't it a simple truth?"

Jeanne Alter's expression gradually softened. "...Yes. Gilles, although your words are always so extreme, this time they put me at ease. Let's go, Berserker, new Dark One." Looking at the familiar standing beside her, Jeanne Alter's face showed anticipation.

"...That's a bit of a mouthful. May I call you by your real names? Lancelot, Knight of the Lake, Charles Henry Sanson, Executioner. Mount your wyverns and follow me."

“…urrrr” the berserker in blue armor roared incessantly.

"...Yes, Master. If we're going to take the Queen's head, no one is more suitable than me." The white-haired man in the black robe smiled slightly and followed Jeanne Alter.

As they spoke, the group disappeared from the scene.

Meanwhile, in Lyon, Marie had already mingled with the citizens and was gathering intelligence.

Today we're going to try this French macaque hotel!

"...That's all..." A man who looked like a normal office worker answered Mary's question.

"I see, I see. I understand now, interesting, very interesting!" Mary, on the other hand, looked excited; she must have received some good news. "Thank you! Well then, until we meet again, take care!"

"Oh, miss, please let me shake your hand next time." The man muttered strange words. "And, it seems you come from a noble family, miss. May I ask your name—"

"My name is Marie Antoinette! Hehehe, it won't hurt you to remember this name." A mischievous smile appeared on Marie's face. "...If my name is passed down for 360 years, future generations will be very surprised, hehehe~" Her signature three-part laugh. In any case, having someone else pass down one's name for 360 years is no small matter. Is this princess childlike or just prone to fantasy? (360 years later, it will be the era of Marie's rise to power.)

—Watching Mary return to the outskirts of the city, he kept waving.

"Everyone! I've found out some news!"

"I'm sorry to trouble you, Mary. If I go out into the streets, I'll definitely cause a commotion..." The reappearance of Joan of Arc, who had only been dead for a few days, coupled with the infamous reputation of the Dragon Witch, made the saint feel extremely embarrassed.

“Don’t worry about it, Joan of Arc. We’re both Servants, right?” Marie waved her hand to tell her not to worry. “Alright, everyone, let’s hear some valuable information about the city of Lyon that Saint Martha mentioned. To sum it up, Lyon was destroyed not long ago, and the refugees who escaped from there settled here.”

Opening Ceremony Strike – I never expected such terrible intelligence to come right from the start.

However, the crowd didn't seem too surprised; rather, they were quite astonished by the Alter Jeanne's detection abilities.

“I was really concerned about Martha’s use of the word ‘once,’ and… just as I expected.” Joan of Arc accepted the information calmly.

“Yes, I’ve heard that there’s a group of monsters that look like they came from hell roaming around that city. However, I think the information from before the destruction is more important. It’s said that Lyon had a guardian deity back then.” Mary nodded, choosing to reveal the information she considered more meaningful.

“A guardian deity…?” Mash’s attention was also drawn to this word.

“Yes, that’s right~” Mary nodded. “It is said that a knight wielding a greatsword repelled the wyverns and skeleton soldiers that attacked the city.”

"I see. Perhaps that's the Servant Lady Martha was referring to." Joan of Arc nodded. Greatsword and knight—these two words shouldn't exist in France at this time. Only "Servant" could explain it.

“Yes, but just recently, a terrifying group of people broke into that city.” Mary frowned, continuing her report with equal concern. “They were probably Servants too. The knight fought them fiercely, but his whereabouts are still unknown. And because of that, Lyon… was destroyed.”

Mary's implication was clear: the knight who protected the city had likely already been defeated.

"I hope that knight is still alive... No, we must believe what Saint Martha said." Mashu rallied her spirits and encouraged everyone.

Seeing Mashu gradually growing, Zhuo nodded approvingly.

“Yes, Mashu is right~” Mary’s face lit up with a smile again, then she thought of something and looked at Joan of Arc, “Oh, right~ there’s one more thing, the army that was thrown into chaos by the murder of Charles VII seems to have been reorganized by Marshal Gilles de Rais.”

"Gil...!?" Needless to say, Joan of Arc would be surprised by his actions when her former comrade-in-arms was mentioned.

Mary nodded to indicate that she was telling the truth. "He's planning an attack to take back Lyon, isn't he?"

"It'll be difficult... Let's meet up with him." Mashu was a little worried.

"Why? Isn't Gilles de Rais a follower of Joan of Arc? If Joan of Arc were to ask him, he would surely lend us a hand, wouldn't he?" Marie's puzzled expression made Joan of Arc sigh.

“...That’s precisely why it’s so difficult. He already knows about my existence as the ‘Dragon Witch,’ right? I don’t think he’ll trust or accept me as I am.” Jeanne shook her head in distress. “He probably already sees me as an enemy…”

"Really? I had a feeling it wouldn't be like that..." It has to be said, Mary's sixth sense, being a woman, was quite accurate. "But I understand why you don't want to see him! After all, you're a girl~" Mary nodded in understanding. "Yeah! I vote for 'If you don't want to see him, then don't!' Besides, we're in a hurry. And I don't think ordinary soldiers can defeat the monsters currently entrenched in Lyon City..."

To be fair, ordinary soldiers are barely able to hold their own against skeletons, let alone monsters like wyverns that are much more impactful.

“…Indeed,” Joan of Arc agreed, indicating that you were right. “Then let’s defeat them with our own strength.”

"Oh! I think it's fine!" Ritsuka stepped forward and patted Nianzhuo on the shoulder. "After all, we have a super strong Servant here!"

“…Hmm.” Without saying anything, Zhuo simply nodded silently. Unbeknownst to everyone, his hands and legs were trembling uncontrollably.

"This is troublesome..." he muttered to himself.

“Ritsuka is right. This level is no challenge for us at all, especially since we have a reliable person like Mr. Nianzhuo.” Jeanne felt that Jeanne was right.

"Mmm~ That's how a commander should be. Here, here's your reward!" Mary walked up to Ritsuka with a smile and gently kissed her cheek.

The scent of citrus! Lilies in bloom! My cabinet moved, I'm not playing anymore! ...Strange thoughts suddenly appeared in Zhuo's mind.

"Whoa~" Mashu blushed as well, having never seen anything like this before, having always stayed in the research facility.

"How about it~ Not bad, right?" Mary covered her mouth with one hand, beaming with a smile.

"Thank you so much!" Ritsuka, her face flushed crimson, immediately bowed deeply in gratitude, her eyes even welling up with tiny ripples. A silly, chuckled sound kept escaping her lips.

"...Senior, are you grinning like an idiot?" Mashu said with a look of disgust, leaning closer to the direction of the murky man.

"Ah, so she finally made her move. I'm sorry, please forgive her." Amadeus, who hadn't been very active until now, finally chimed in. "It's Mary's bad habit; she likes to kiss people randomly for no reason. Because of this habit, she once caused great chaos in the palace. Can you believe it? There was almost a factional split over whether or not someone had been kissed by her? The monarchy almost collapsed before the revolution! You'd never see such a stupid plot point even in fairy tales or plays!"

(So ​​this French custom started back then... He almost surrendered before the revolution even started, which would probably scare those patriots out of their wits.) This comes from Zhuo's inner monologue.

However, her hands didn't stop; she kept kneading Ritsuka's still-smiling face, making it seem as if she had been bewitched.

"Hey, be more alert... You're supposed to be the last Master of humanity, you know." Looking directly into her eyes, which were filled with small circles, Zhuo had a look of utter disappointment on his face.

"Huh? Doesn't anyone kiss others?" Mary looked on incredulously. "If you feel really excited, you'll naturally kiss them, right, Joan of Arc?" Mary's eyes sparkled as she looked at the saint beside her, convinced that the other woman would understand.

"No...no, no~ This kind of thing has to be based on marriage--" Miss Saintess was surprisingly innocent, and rightly so, since she had never been in a relationship, this reaction was indeed normal.

However, remnants are destined to cause trouble.

"...Huh!? Hey, wait a minute." Amadeus stopped in his tracks, looking at the soldiers approaching from a distance. "Why do those soldiers look so menacing? They don't seem like returning soldiers..."

“…It seems those soldiers have become outlaws.” Joan of Arc noticed their tattered armor and sword blades, and even saw marks from skeletal soldiers hacking at them in places. “Given such tragic circumstances, it’s no wonder they ended up like this.” Joan clenched her fist and raised the flag.

"But I can't stand seeing casualties in this city. Let us arrest them."

"...I understand." Zhuo silently sheathed the sword in his hand and stretched his limbs again.

"Okay! Then I'll use the shield back." He got into position and looked at the soldiers who were already charging towards him.

Several people went to greet them.

You are chaste and not subject to punishment

Faced with several Servants, these ordinary soldiers and bandits couldn't even hold them off.

After handing the last unconscious bandit over to the city officials, Mashu felt relieved. "The thieves have been tied up and handed over to the city officials. They should be able to handle things properly from now on. Alright, everyone, it's time for us to get going!"

—Walking along a country lane, the old ox returning home at dusk is my companion.

"Well, we're almost there, aren't we?" Mary looked troubled. "I'm not good at long journeys."

"Don't worry, we should arrive soon." Joan of Arc seemed unburdened, but then her expression turned serious. "...The thought of seeing destroyed cities again weighs heavily on my heart..."

—Without saying a word, the Chaldea group arrived at Lyon, or rather, the ruins of what was once called Lyon.

Joan of Arc went up to the dilapidated fortress, took a look, and came down. "...There's no one here."

"Director, are there any life forms reacting at Chaldea? --" Mash's communication device beeped.

"..." was met with silence.

"Director?" Mashu patted the communication device on her hand, wondering if something was wrong.

The static continued, and Mashu looked at the others helplessly. "Sorry, the signal seems to be weak. Let's split up and search for the 'Dragon Slayer' that Saint Martha spoke of."

"Hmm, let's have a race to see who finds it first!" Mary walked over to Amadeus. "Amadeus and I will choose the west side~"

“Then… Mash and I will go to the east. What about Mr. Nianzhuo?” Jeanne and Mash formed a group.

“Ritsuka and I will go to the east too… After all, Mash, you are Ritsuka’s Servant, and a Master should stay by their side.” Zhuo stroked his chin, then suddenly picked up Ritsuka in a princess carry. “Then let’s see who’s faster!” He flipped over and leaped. Zhuo’s figure disappeared into the ruins in an instant.

"Ah!" Mash, shield in hand, and Jeanne d'Arc sped up their run. "So cunning! Mr. Nianzhuo!"

"I was here first... It's good that we're together... (chanting begins)"

Standing in the city, Nianzhuo and Lixiang looked at the ruins around them and were filled with emotion.

"This place was once a beautiful city, why did that 'Dragon Witch' have to—" Touching the towering ruins of the church, one could still see its original white color on its charred exterior.

"That Joan of Arc isn't the Joan of Arc we know, is it? Mr. Nencho?" Ritsuka said firmly. She had absolute faith that the current saintess would never do something like destroying a city.

"Hmm...it seems we haven't found anything here either. Let's go back and meet up with them." Easily sensing the location of the two, Zhuo's expression suddenly tightened, and he stopped Ritsuka, who was about to leave.

"Mr. Nianzhuo...?"

"Ritsuka...did you hear anything just now?" Looking around, Tsuru felt more and more uneasy.

“Hmm, although it was very light, it could very well be a survivor. Let’s go check it out.” Ritsuka undoubtedly thought this was a good thing, so the two of them headed towards the place where the sound came from.

Meanwhile, Jeanne d'Arc and Mash were also approaching that location.

However—once you get there, it's a completely different scene.

His turbid face instantly turned serious—even Ritsuka was so frightened that she took a few steps back.

Those were not survivors, but living corpses with blood dripping from their mouths. Some of them even had their intestines exposed to the air, unconsciously gnawing on the bodies of the dead. Sensing the presence of living beings, they immediately staggered closer.

"Ugh!!" Ritsuka had never seen such a terrifying zombie before, and immediately hid behind Nencho.