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

Joan of Arc nodded seriously, a rare occurrence for her: "I still love her."

"Even if those people want to rob us, want to charge us tolls, even if those people want to tie you to the stake and burn you alive?"

“Even if they want to tie me to the stake and burn me to death…” Joan of Arc’s eyes dimmed.

"Then are you willing... to protect her?"

"Protect?"

Joan of Arc didn't understand this statement. She was just a country girl from the countryside, while Lucretia was the most powerful country in the world at that time. As such, she was only entitled to be protected by Lucretia. How could she possibly turn around and protect Lucretia?

"No one knows everything from the start, including me. Esgard wasn't built in a day. It gradually transformed from a small city into the metropolis it is today. I'm not saying this to comfort you; it's the truth."

“I believe you will not remain just an ordinary village girl forever. I believe that one day, you will make the whole world know your name, you will become people’s idol, you will become the nightmare of your enemies, you will lead the whole country, and future generations will take you as their role model.”

“I…I…I really can become that kind of person…” Joan of Arc was stunned; she had never imagined that anyone would have such high expectations of her.

"Even if it takes ten or twenty years, it doesn't matter. I will always be by your side and teach you all sorts of things. Even if it takes a long time and we encounter many difficulties, you will do it one day."

"Really?" Joan looked at Aaron. "Will my teacher always be with me?"

"Of course, I will always be by your side. I hope that in the future, you will not only shine brightly, but also protect me in return. Being protected by your own student must be a very proud thing for a teacher," Aaron said with a smile.

Joan of Arc was completely stunned, her hands hanging limply, unable to utter a single word. This was the first time Joan of Arc had felt the expectations others had for her. She didn't know why her teacher trusted her so much; there was no reason, just as her teacher's choice to save her was completely illogical.

But the teacher's immense trust had enveloped her like a storm, stirring up inexplicable feelings in the girl's heart—feelings she had never experienced before.

This girl from the countryside used all her clumsy imagination to try to picture herself protecting her teacher in the future, and to imagine herself shining brightly as her teacher had said. Gradually, her heart began to surge with excitement.

She felt something strike her heart, like a wildfire igniting her entire being. She felt as if she had been struck by lightning, as if she had found her purpose in life, and suddenly possessed meaning in it. Even many years later, when the scenes in her memory had become blurred, she still deeply remembered this feeling—the feeling of being unconditionally trusted and unconditionally cared for. She was willing to give everything for this feeling.

Many years later, the girl still clearly remembers the feeling in her heart at that moment and firmly believes that this feeling is "love". By then, the girl has already made the name "Joan of Arc" resound throughout the world.

The teacher is right. She will indeed make the whole world remember her name in the future, so much so that when people talk about this period, they will say that this era belongs to Joan of Arc, even though many years ago she was just a village girl who couldn't even read.

Historians of the future will describe how enemy nations trembled at the mere mention of her name, how she saved the nation from collapse, and how countless biographies and reports will be written about her.

Countless generations of experts and scholars will study her and try to understand her inner world, but they will never be able to delve into Joan of Arc's mind and understand the things that flashed through her mind when she stood at the pinnacle.

She successfully met her teacher's expectations.

But the teacher broke his promise.

Sixteen years later, at night.

The Lucerne Empire, the Palace of Iris.

This is one of the oldest and most famous museums in the world, but the museum is famous not because of the museum itself, but because of its collections and its owners.

The Alice Museum is famous because of Queen Lucerne, who collected all the artworks and artifacts she had looted from other countries.

In this respect alone, Queen Lusette can be described as utterly wicked. She ruthlessly transported the collections of the countries she conquered back to her own country and placed them in this museum famous for its art, leaving the enemy country in ruins.

In academic terms, it's less of a museum and more of Queen Lucerne's trophy room, a place where she, as the greatest conqueror of the century, flaunted her power to the world. Just as a famous monarch collected all the swords he used to defeat his kings and forged them into the Iron Throne, she used these trophies to create her own museum.

Today, when Queen Lucerne enters this museum again—no, it should be called her trophy room—the courtiers always fall silent, for whenever Her Majesty comes here, she is always preoccupied with some inexplicable thoughts, and anyone who dares to provoke her at this time will only face the death penalty.

This was the survival philosophy of the Lucerne court: the courtiers would obediently wait outside.

But tonight's situation was somewhat unusual. Snow was falling heavily outside the museum, and the Queen, draped in a cloak, had been standing inside for a long time without moving an inch, her gaze fixed intently on the painting before her.

Too much time has passed, so much that it has delayed the progress significantly, so much that even the ministers, whose minds are filled with court wisdom, have decided to muster all their courage and come to His Majesty's side, hoping to pull him back from some inexplicable emotion.

The loyal subject finally decided to approach the Empress in the central gallery, but just then, he heard the Empress's soft murmur.

"Actually, I couldn't understand those art concepts at all; I just memorized them by rote."

But if you collect all the world's artworks, turn museums into your trophy room, and everyone calls you the conqueror, and the most famous portrait of the conqueror in the world is painted for you, then no one in the world will care about your art knowledge, and no one will question whether she understands art or not, right?

Gazing at the enormous painting before her, the Queen's calm eyes, which had captivated countless hearts, suddenly blazed like flames. Her cloak billowed slightly, and a terrifying aura emanated from her. Ministers who wished to approach immediately stopped and knelt on one knee, for they knew that the Queen had once again used the Book of Omniscience to search for something. This was the authority of the gods, and Queen Lucerne had used divine power countless times to search for something.

This was actually a royal secret, yet it was a secret known only to her ministers. Her Majesty the Emperor was always like this, using the Book of Omniscience to search for something from time to time. No one knew what she was doing with the Book of Omniscience, and as a god-like figure in the empire, no one dared to ask or question her actions.

The minister knelt on the ground, watching as the Empress's burning golden eyes slowly returned to calm, her cloak slowly falling off, and then the Empress gently exhaled towards the empty gallery.

"Still can't find it...?"

"Unbeknownst to us, sixteen years have already passed..."

*

The clock strikes sixteen years ago, before everything became irreversible.

winter.

The charcoal crackled and burned in the fireplace, illuminating the room in a red glow. It was still dark, and snow was falling heavily outside the window, but the girl was already sitting at the wooden table, beginning to study.

This session lasts for three hours, rain or shine, without fail. Only after these three hours of study can one have breakfast and begin the day's activities; this is always the start of the day.

In spring, flowers and new buds grow among the grass. A girl who is still growing stands among the grass, but she is covered in mud and dirt, soaked as if she has been pulled out of the water, panting heavily. She has been knocked down countless times. The person who taught her to fight doesn't care that she is a girl at this time, and just knocks her down again and again.

“You have three blessings: gun, sword, and banner. Others only need to master one weapon, but you need to master three. This sounds like it will be much more difficult, but I only require you to know one thing.”

Her combat instructor was Aaron, the third seat of the Obsidian Knights. This was an extremely rare opportunity in the entire Asgard. If others knew, they would be astonished. Although Jeanne did not know this, it did not stop her from learning diligently.

I still remember an incident that happened before the teacher formally taught her how to master extraordinary powers.

The king not only bestowed upon her the title of saint, but also appointed a swordsmanship instructor for her. This instructor was no ordinary person, but the chief swordsman of the Omniscient Knights.

His duties in the Order of the Omniscient Knights were simple: to teach them swordsmanship. He was also the chief instructor of the Order. It is clear that the king valued Joan of Arc highly and did not simply leave her to her own devices.

However, although this arrangement seemed wonderful, the king seemed to have forgotten that the sword instructor taught more than just Joan of Arc. It is said that he had a class of young masters and ladies, and his daily task was to teach swordsmanship to dozens of young masters and ladies. Although Joan of Arc was just one of them, it was still an honor for her.

Chapter 14 White Tower Holy Academy

When the instructor received the order, he treated Joan of Arc as a young master and lady. However, on the first day of reporting, Joan of Arc did not show up, which troubled the instructor. Although he may not have been very attentive to teaching, this was, after all, the king's order, and he still had to maintain appearances. More importantly, as the chief swordsman, he had been stood up.

This piqued Syrio's curiosity, and on a sunny afternoon, he successfully learned of Joan of Arc and found her student who was practicing swordsmanship in the fields.

She was supposed to be practicing swordsmanship, but when Syrio saw her, she was running laps around the field, which was normal, as superhumans need physical strength to support them. However, when Syrio wanted to have a heart-to-heart talk with her student, he saw Aaron standing to the side.

"You... what are you doing here? You... you... you're teaching her swordsmanship?" the swordsmanship instructor said, dumbfounded.

"Are you her swordsmanship instructor?" Aaron spat out the tender stem in his mouth.

"It's...it's me. I didn't expect it would be you teaching her." The swordsmanship instructor was surprised and uncertain.

"Now that you're here, I'd like to discuss something with you."

Cilio made a gesture that said, "I understand everything: I have no objection whatsoever to what you taught her. In fact, I'm happy to have some peace and quiet. I'll go back and report this to His Majesty right away."

"No, what I mean is, you will still be her swordsmanship instructor. You will still conduct regular swordsmanship assessments for her. She will also be your student outside, but I will help you with the teaching work."

Cilio was stunned: "That's good?"

“The king appointed you to teach her; this was a pre-arranged arrangement. I am the one who is creating trouble.”

"Okay, I have no objection, but since she's considered my student, I need to know how well I'm teaching her, it can't be too bad... you know...?"

“After all, even if you are a master swordsman, you may not be able to teach students, while I have extensive teaching experience.” Sirio said without batting an eye, as if he were genuinely teaching seriously.

“I’ve never taught anyone before; I just teach in my own way.”

“I’ve heard that she has three blessings and three weapons: a gun, a sword, and a military flag. This is very rare in the history of Lucerne. How do you plan to teach her?”

“I only let her practice with one weapon.” Aaron tossed the object in his hand to him, and Syrio saw that it was a beautifully whittled wooden stick.

"A wooden stick?"

"Yes, a wooden stick."

"A wooden stick can be long or short. Unlike other weapons, it doesn't have a center of gravity limitation, nor does it have sharp edges. Therefore, once you learn how to use a stick, it's the same as learning how to use other weapons," Aaron said, looking at the wooden stick in his hand.

"There is a saying in Lucretius: all sword saints are weapon masters, and the first weapon that all sword saints learn to use is a wooden stick."

“You’re right, but that’s the method for training sword masters, or even sword saints.”

Sirio turned to look at Joan of Arc, who was running laps. Compared to her peers, Joan of Arc's foundation was too weak. While her peers were practicing swordsmanship, Joan of Arc was still practicing running laps to improve her physical strength. Could someone like this really become a "master of swordsmanship" in the future?

Aaron did not answer.

Summer:

The girl gripped the wooden stick tightly in her hands. Her hands were red and her knees were covered in mud, indicating that she had been beaten countless times. But she was much stronger than other children and was still struggling to hold on.

Joan of Arc was no longer required to run laps and had officially begun practicing swordsmanship. Because her foundation was weaker than that of the other children, she had to put in much more effort than the other children, and her teacher was also very strict with her.

She still remembers her teacher's words of instruction during the battle: "Don't try to get more resources! Don't expect to back out! Don't leave yourself any room for maneuver! Don't give yourself a second chance, and get rid of all wishful thinking! Make good use of what you have now, get up, and fight! That's all I've taught you!"

After saying that, the girl sprang up again, and the two wooden sticks crossed together, making a loud "bang bang" sound, with sparks flying between them.

"I absolutely love this job..."

The chief swordsman of the Omniscient Knights lay on a sun lounger not far away, a drink on his left armrest and a donut on his right. He wore sunglasses, crossed his legs, and leisurely watched the battle below the field.

The teacher was quite strict, but after the training, only he could restore and treat the exhausted Joan of Arc. In a way, he was asking for trouble.

Fall:

The girl in her nun's habit ran into the headquarters of the Obsidian Knights, eager to tell her teacher the good news.

Logically speaking, this should be a strictly hierarchical military base, but no one paid any attention to the little girl who had wandered in. The girl seemed to know the place like the back of her hand, wandering around as if she were in her own playground.

Finally, the girl spotted the person she was looking for in the crowd. He was having a meeting at a table. The girl tried to get his attention, wanting to tell him the good news.

She has officially passed the church's examination and become a novice nun. She will then gradually rise through the ranks and become familiar with church affairs.

Although she had to start as a novice nun and couldn't become a saint directly, the nuns in the church treated her very well, thinking she was very ambitious, and she did her church work very well, whether it was communion, singing hymns, or leading the lost sheep.

As a reward, the nun awarded her a medal as a saint. Upon receiving the medal, she immediately went to his workplace to find him.

However, as soon as she arrived, she regretted it a little, realizing that she might have disturbed the teacher's work. The girl decided to wait elsewhere and surprise him later.

But as she was about to leave quietly, she accidentally knocked over the coffee cup on the table, and the dark brown liquid spilled onto the documents on the table. The girl panicked.

At this moment, the man who had been talking to her noticed her, but he did not stop talking. Instead, he came to her side while talking to the other man, tidied up the things on the table for her, gave the girl a reassuring look, patted her head, and told her to go out for a while and wait on the side.

Another winter after the changing of the seasons.

White Tower Holy Church.

The White Tower Holy Church was originally just a theological seminary, with only theology as its subject. But as a philosopher once said, everything is theology, and the Holy Church began to teach more and more...

With the patronage and diligent management of the Tower family, it has become one of the world's most academically diverse and renowned colleges.

Today, the White Tower Academy is still known for its theology, but at the same time, it has become one of the few academies in Lucerne that can impart extraordinary knowledge.