Raise Joan of Arc to be an empress, then discard her.

He also wanted to see the people he wanted to see, and then go to the battlefield in place of the men.

Chapter 100 Blood

Headquarters of the Omniscient Knights.

The deafening roar drew everyone's attention, and everyone witnessed the artillery fire shattering the barrier, as if a corner of the sky had been torn apart, with dense artillery fire raining down on the city.

Lydia looked away, unable to bear watching any longer. If she wasn't mistaken, that was the old town, where many artisans lived. There was delicious bread and ice cream there. If a shell like that were to hit, all these beautiful things and the people who created them would be buried by the shells.

Their city is now being engulfed by gunfire, yet they're still holding a meeting here—it's the most ridiculous thing in the world, and Lydia isn't the only one who feels this way; everyone else in the meeting room feels the same way.

Just as the conference room fell silent, people's expressions becoming complicated due to the fire and the breach in the barrier, footsteps suddenly came from outside the headquarters.

People looked out the gate in surprise. Apart from those guarding the city gate, the high-ranking officials of the three major knightly orders had all arrived. Who else would come at this time? Could it be Aaron?

Aurelion frowned. There were guards from the three major knightly orders standing guard outside the door. In principle, no one could enter without their permission unless he killed all the guards at the door. But that person just swaggered in like that.

The newcomer had his hands behind his back, without a single soldier in his party, and was not dressed in a knight's uniform, but rather in a priest's robe.

The young priest was known to everyone present; he was a favorite of the king.

"What are you doing here?" Aurelion frowned.

"I am here to convey His Majesty's orders." The young priest stood confidently before the Grand Master of the Knights, slowly drawing a sword from behind his back.

All the knights recognized the sword; it was the king's sword. If there was anything in the world that could prove royal status, the first was the Book of Omniscience, and the second was this sword. The king used this sword to hold ceremonies and investitures, and whoever held this sword was considered to have been authorized by the king.

"The high-ranking officials of the three major knightly orders are all here. Very good. His Majesty sent me here because he was worried that the knightly commanders might not have a clear understanding of His Majesty's orders, so I'm reiterating them once again."

The priest held up three fingers, surveyed the crowd with a stern expression, and said in a kingly tone, "Hold on, hold on, hold on! As long as we hold Esgard, we will be victorious!"

As expected of someone who had always been by the king's side, his tone was indeed incredibly lifelike, and even his movements were exactly the same. For a moment, they really thought it was the king's voice.

Seeing the knights' reaction, the priest also showed a satisfied expression. There are not many people in this world who can simultaneously subdue three major knightly orders; from today onwards, he will be remembered in history.

"Hold on to the death?"

But his satisfaction was short-lived, as someone stepped forward – Lydia: "The barrier of Esgard has been breached, and soon a third of Esgard will be destroyed. Are you suggesting we just watch those people get blown up and continue to hold out?"

Since being expelled from the Blazing White Knights, she has become increasingly lawless. Some knights admire her courage, while others disapprove of her, but in any case, she is the kind of person who will stand up at this time.

The priest said expressionlessly, “Our barrier is not as fragile as you think. There is only a gap in our barrier, and it will be repaired soon. This is an inevitable situation after a large-scale attack. Haven’t you noticed that no more shells have fallen since that bombardment? Because our barrier can repair itself. The claim that a third of Esgard was destroyed is utter nonsense.”

After saying that, the priest turned around and looked at Lydia with a cold smile: "If I remember correctly, you have been expelled from the Knights. Why would someone who is not a knight appear here? This is an occasion where only knights are allowed to be."

"I'm standing right here, what can you do to me?" Lydia squinted, a cold aura emanating from her eyes.

The young priest met her gaze: "Lydia, don't think His Majesty doesn't know what you've done. Everything you've done has been seen by His Majesty. What you've done is enough for His Majesty to execute you a hundred times over. It's only because of these special times and His Majesty's mercy that you've been allowed to live until now."

"So you admit that the Heavenly Fire is true?" Lydia angrily held the monster's head in her hand.

“The Heavenly Fire is real, of course. It is a secret weapon prepared by His Majesty for the war. It was originally intended to play a significant role on the battlefield, but you have made a mess of it,” the priest replied coldly.

"There's something I don't understand either," the All-Knowing Sword stepped forward. "His Majesty has ordered us to hold out to the death. What turning point are we waiting for?"

“His Majesty does indeed have a plan, which I originally did not intend to reveal, because once the plan is revealed, there will be changes. However, due to some people spreading rumors, I now have no choice but to reveal the plan.” The young priest shook his head at the crowd in disappointment.

"Since Heavenly Fire can be used to ignite spiritual power, why can't we directly ignite the enemy's spiritual power? That way we can kill them effortlessly, without even our knights having to lift a finger."

"In fact, His Majesty is already prepared to carry out this plan, but to carry out this plan, to make good use of the Heavenly Fire, to wait for an opportunity to make the enemy anxious, to make them arrogant and complacent, to slowly take the bait, and then to kill them with their own spiritual power, our knights need to be patient for that opportunity."

At this point, he sighed softly, clutching his chest with a pained expression: "I am heartbroken. You actually didn't trust His Majesty's judgment, who possesses the Book of Omniscience. You didn't believe His Majesty had prepared for this war for so long, you didn't believe that everything was under His Majesty's control..."

While the young priest was speaking eloquently, Joan of Arc quietly stepped out from the crowd. Only a few people noticed her. The priest saw her but didn't care at all. He was trying to persuade the Grand Master of the Knights. What right did a nobody girl have to attract his attention?

Therefore, when Joan of Arc summoned her blessing in full view of everyone and grasped the spear, the priest did not even have time to react.

With a "whoosh," the spear pierced the priest's throat, and blood shot out from behind him. The priest's eyes widened, and he staggered backward. The last thing he saw before he died was the spear trembling violently in his vision, and the girl who threw the spear.

Chapter 101 The Saintess

With a thud, the priest's arms fell to the ground. He had no time to react and was killed right before his eyes.

Most of the people present did not see her movements clearly. By the time they did, blood had already spurted out, and they were shocked to see the priest fall down.

The priest was also a superhuman, and his strength was no weaker than that of the knights present, yet the girl killed him so easily.

Amidst the shock, the girl walked up to the priest, drew her spear with a "bang," and looked at the corpse on the ground, saying, "It seems he didn't foresee that he would be killed."

Joan of Arc drew her bloodstained spear, turned around so that everyone could see her face, and gazed ahead, yet also as if gazing at everyone:

"The king obviously did not expect that I would kill him, otherwise the king would not have sent him here."

She raised the blood-stained spear, her voice echoing in the quiet conference room:

"The king's words have become ineffective. His prophecies have always been nonsense. He cannot predict what will happen in a few minutes, nor can he predict the actions of others. Therefore, he certainly cannot predict the course of the entire battle, let alone foresee that Lusset will win."

“Lydia,” Joan of Arc said suddenly.

"Here!" Lydia's body trembled violently. She didn't know why, but even though they had been together day and night, the girl's unfamiliar face made her feel afraid.

“Give me the monster’s head.” Joan of Arc held out her hand.

Joan of Arc received the head from Lydia's hands. Unlike the priest, she did not look around; her pupils seemed to encompass everything.

"I discovered the Heavenly Fire from the King's research base. Everyone in the secret base died in the process of finding evidence of its existence. We paid a heavy price to discover it."

"But this wasn't the first time I saw the Heavenly Fire at the secret base. The first time I saw it was outside the walls of Esgard. These Heavenly Fires were actually prepared long ago, ready to be released when the war was at its most intense. The Heavenly Fires would not only ignite the spiritual power of the enemy soldiers, but also the spiritual power of our soldiers. This wasn't part of the plan; it was the final measure."

Joan of Arc's golden hair moved without wind, leaping up behind her like flowing gold. Joan of Arc had actually unleashed her own domain, a golden domain that instantly covered the entire meeting hall. Spears, swords, and banners—three different blessings—appeared behind her, fluttering in the wind. The knights simultaneously recalled the legend of the girl with three blessings, the saintess prophesied by the king.

Joan of Arc lowered her head: "The King is no longer an all-knowing and all-powerful god. His heavenly fire has been discovered, his predictions have failed, and everything he said is a lie. And now I must tell you, the Seven Kingdoms have surrounded us from the outside. Our Lusset, all of us Lussetians are in danger. Our great Lusset has reached the most dangerous moment in a thousand years. The only way to protect Lusset is for us."

"It is too late to do this, it is too late to say this, but we must go out of the city to resist the seven-nation alliance."

"If you still believe in the prophecies of the Book of Omniscience, and still believe in the victories described in the Book of Omniscience, then go ahead and believe."

"But we are different from you. We no longer believe in prophecies. We will create victory with our own hands! We will go out of the city to resist the Seven Nations Alliance. We will use our own strength to drive the Seven Nations Alliance out of Lusset!"

As she spoke, Joan's hands trembled violently, but not from fear. No one believed that someone who had just killed a priest would be afraid. Before she could finish speaking, Lydia had already raised her hand and stood beside Joan. The girl had her first supporter. Lydia was always like this, appearing by Joan's side whenever she needed her.

As soon as Lydia stepped forward, the second person to raise their hand was Enzo.

Enzo raised his hand and stood firmly beside Joan of Arc under the gaze of the crowd.

He was a well-known advocate of war in the kingdom and had always advocated going out of the city to resist the seven-nation coalition. Joan of Arc was a child he had watched grow up. As Joan of Arc's elder, Enzo admired the girl's bravery and how she had grown up. He was also ashamed that he was not even as good as a girl. Therefore, he stepped forward without hesitation and came to Joan of Arc's side.

More people raised their hands, almost all of them from the Obsidian Knights' side. Ever since Jeanne joined the Obsidian Knights at the age of thirteen, she had become the lively little sprite of the order. Many of them had watched Jeanne grow up. They shared Enzo's feelings, and since Enzo had made his stance clear, they naturally followed suit without hesitation.

Seeing that all the Obsidian Knights were standing behind Jeanne, the atmosphere in the meeting room began to ease. People looked at each other, a surge of emotion flowing through their hearts. Just then, a figure wearing a dark gold robe stepped forward.

It was Aurelion. He slowly approached Lydia, nodded, and said, "There is not a single coward among us, the Blazing White Knights."

With the leader having made his decision, the rest of the knights no longer hesitated and came to Jeanne's side. Some even went directly to Lydia and embraced her warmly.

Finally, all eyes turned to Agil, the Knight King, the kingdom's sword, whose attitude was of paramount importance.

Aguirre gazed at Joan of Arc's face for a long time, and at that moment, he actually smiled softly.

“Thank you for finally letting me do what a knight should do.” Agil approached Joan of Arc and raised his hand.

At this point, all the high-ranking members of the three knightly orders stood by Joan of Arc's side. Joan of Arc was momentarily dazed, never expecting that she had actually succeeded in persuading everyone to defend their homeland.

Pre-battle mobilization is complete. This is a rare moment in history. The three knightly orders have decided to defy the king's orders and leave the city to resist the invaders, for the sake of the Kingdom of Lucerne.

"The speech just now was very inspiring, but we can't all leave the city together. Some of us still need to stay behind. This is not because we are cowardly, but because we need them. Moreover, the matter of the Heavenly Fire has not been completely resolved. We need someone to find the hidden Heavenly Fire and prevent it from exploding. We can't let our soldiers become fuel on the battlefield while they are fighting."

“I know how to stop the fire from the heavens,” Joan of Arc said.

Akil was somewhat surprised, but this suited him perfectly, because the matter was of great importance and someone needed to find and deal with the Heavenly Fire. It was most appropriate to entrust this task to the person who discovered the Heavenly Fire.

Aguirre had just been worried that Joan of Arc's pre-battle speech might have made her too emotional to stay in Esgard, but now he realized he was overthinking it; Joan of Arc was much more mature than he had imagined.

Chapter 102 Commander of the Obsidian Knights

"You've really raised a good student," Akil thought to himself.

“I need some people to stay and help me,” Joan of Arc said.

“No problem. We can’t send everyone to the front lines. We need to prepare for the worst and consider them as seeds for the future. I already have some candidates in mind.”

"May I choose a few people?" Joan of Arc asked.

Akil paused for a moment, then readily agreed: "No problem, you can choose."

Needless to say, the Obsidian Knights, Aurelion and the Knight King also greatly admired Joan of Arc and readily granted her request.

“Syrio, I need him to stay.” Joan of Arc named the first person.

“I was originally planning to go to the battlefield and kill a few foreigners.” Cirio swayed as he stood next to Joan of Arc. As Joan of Arc’s former swordsmanship teacher, they didn’t need to say anything more.

Joan of Arc then asked for a few more people, all of whom were people she trusted greatly in the Knights of Favonius. Aguirre and Aurelion did not refuse and agreed to Joan of Arc's request.

“Come, go and fulfill our sacred mission! Those who do not go should not regret it, for we have entrusted our lives to you,” Akir proclaimed.

*

The meeting room gradually quieted down, and those who remained looked at Joan of Arc. They were all handpicked by Joan of Arc from various knightly orders, either for their courage or for their trustworthiness. They were all waiting for Joan of Arc's next instructions.

"What should we do next?" someone asked.

"Waiting for someone," Joan of Arc replied.

"Who?"

"They're here."

Soon, a figure appeared at the headquarters entrance. It was Abby, fully armed. She had once been a member of the Obsidian Knights, so many of those who stayed behind recognized her.

The people following Abby were all people they knew. Although they weren't dressed as knights, most of them had been knights in the past. They were people who had been wounded in war or expelled from the three major knightly orders. What they had in common was that they had all joined Joan of Arc's group and were absolutely loyal to her.

"Ten minutes to prepare, then we'll depart." Joan of Arc gave the order to everyone, put away her blessing, and went to the headquarters entrance to look out over the entire Asgard.

Just then, Joan of Arc heard footsteps. Those who were supposed to come had already come, and those who were supposed to leave had already left. Who else would come at this time?

Joan of Arc turned around and saw the most familiar figure standing in front of her.

“Teacher,” Joan of Arc murmured softly.

"I'm going to the battlefield, and before that, I want to see..."

Before Aaron could finish speaking, a golden figure rushed into his arms, causing him to stumble. The nineteen-year-old girl, who had just regained her composure, clung to him tightly, her body trembling violently.