"You were in high spirits just earlier, so why do you look so depressed now?"
Jalter, who had followed Jiang You back to the Library, looked at him as he remained completely silent.
"It's not exactly that I'm depressed, it's just that there are some things I don't quite understand. I've had this thought before..."
Jiang You turned his head to stare at Jalter and knocked on the forehead protector on her head. The iron forehead protector made a clanking sound. "Sometimes, I wonder... could it be that you guys actually exist for real?"
Jiang You's C-Rank strength was nothing to scoff at. Although the penguin-like headpiece on Jalter's forehead could serve as a symbol of her identity, it was ultimately not a Noble Phantasm. Jiang You hadn't held back much of his strength this time, knocking it so hard that Jalter felt her whole head vibrating.
"Are you out of your mind?!"
Jalter covered her head and backed away a few steps, shouting angrily at Jiang You, "Of course I'm real! You want to pick a fight, don't you?!"
"...Fair enough, asking you guys wouldn't get me any answers anyway. So far, apart from the realism being a bit too high, there aren't any other issues."
Every time Jiang You started having these thoughts, someone would intentionally or unintentionally steer the topic away. Of course, it could also just be Jiang You's overactive imagination. When it came to interpreting things, once a seed of doubt was planted, you could read hidden meanings into a simple glass of water.
"Let's take care of the matter at hand first. We'll go find your true self—let's just hope we don't end up having to collect her corpse when we get there."
"What are you looking at me for? I couldn't care less if she dies."
Jalter pretended to be completely unbothered, but her fidgeting hands had already betrayed her true thoughts. Earlier at Morgan's place, the moment she realized this issue, she had already started unconsciously stomping her foot.
"It's just a shame I won't be able to mock her to her face, that's all."
"Mock? Who are we mocking? As a mother, I have to put a stop to such bad behavior."
Tiamat also walked in at this moment. Having read too many modern parenting books, her current views were somewhat similar to those of a normal human, though she still retained her original mindset in certain aspects.
"..."
Jalter's momentum weakened a bit. "I'm a villain to begin with, a Witch... this kind of thing doesn't matter, right..."
"Who calls themselves a villain?"
Tiamat showed a distressed expression. "I think I've seen this kind of behavior somewhere before... I think it's called... Chuunii?"
Jiang You had no way to communicate with Tiamat on this subject, so he simply changed the topic.
"Tiamat, did you forget about Jeanne d'Arc's situation? Because I summoned you back, she's the only one left over there."
"...You're right. She's probably still being hunted down by the other children over there."
Only then did Tiamat remember Jeanne's situation. Even for her, there was a difference in closeness and distance in her attitude towards others.
"Jiang You, you want to go help her, right?"
"Not just me, Jalter here thinks the same."
Jiang You pointed to Jalter, who was already prepared for battle beside him, dragging her into the conversation as well.
"No I'm not, I just went over there to laugh at her!"
Jalter retorted.
Tiamat looked Jalter up and down, an expression of sudden realization dawning on her face.
"I think I understand. This child is what you call a tsundere, right?"
"As expected of Tiamat, seeing right through to Jalter's true nature at a glance!"
"Tsundere? What tsundere! You're the tsundere! Your whole family are tsunderes!"
"Is that an admission? But Mommy isn't one, you know~"
-
Jeanne d'Arc narrowly dodged an arrow aimed at her leg. The arrow scraped fiercely against her skirt armor, striking a shower of sparks before ricocheting to the side. She looked around but could not see the attacker anywhere. If she didn't possess her Revelation Skill, which acted similarly to Instinct, she never would have been able to dodge such a silent attack in time.
With Jeanne d'Arc's perception, any servant within a hundred meters—unless they were an Assassin—had nowhere to hide from her. This meant the opponent had locked onto her unprotected weak points from hundreds of meters away. One had to remember that this was a dense jungle. It would be one thing if the enemy were nearby, but the attacker was at least a hundred meters away. To execute a completely silent attack that perfectly bypassed the dense trees and foliage was simply Inconceivable.
Before Jeanne d'Arc could even catch her breath, the sound of the air being pierced came from above, and emerald arrows locked onto her vicinity like a shower of rain. Unlike the miraculous method used earlier, this attack was exceptionally ferocious, evidently launched by another Servant. Moreover, judging from the intensity of the attack, it was very likely the opponent's Noble Phantasm.
"It seems the second Archer has also arrived. Although this might expose my position, there's no helping it—I offer my prayers here. Please protect my friends, my comrades. My Lord is here!"
Her flag fluttered, and a golden light shot up into the sky. The arrows were blocked by the radiance, completely unable to advance even half a step.
"What an exaggerated Noble Phantasm."
Atalante watched as her Noble Phantasm was entirely repelled, revealing a quite displeased expression.
"But with this, that big oaf should also be able to pinpoint her location. A defensive Noble Phantasm is truly passive. As for you, the famous Chiron, aren't you going to unleash your Noble Phantasm?"
Chiron shook his head. As a teacher to many Heroes, he had long since seen through Atalante's thoughts; as fellow Greek archers, Atalante wanted to have a showdown right here. "Young people sure are full of vitality, which is a good thing. Competition brings motivation. My Noble Phantasm has no way of breaking through this Saintess's defenses either. In that regard, we are the same, so consider it a draw."
Atalante wasn't very satisfied with this answer either. Originally, she and Chiron would have had the chance to compete fair and square on the battlefield, but unfortunately, circumstances dictated otherwise, and everyone had to cooperate for now.
"Saintess? Can a girl like her really be a Saintess? Beast... it's hard to imagine such a thing even exists, yet as a Saintess, she actually allied herself with a Beast. Could it be just like what that annoying Caster said, she is actually a Witch? Gilles de Rais becoming Bluebeard is probably inextricably linked to her as well..."
It wasn't that Atalante had any particular grudge against Jeanne d'Arc, but mainly that the idea of a Ruler mixing with a Beast was far too bizarre, especially since a Beast was an enemy of humanity.
"I also don't quite understand why she would act alongside a Beast. But we already have a Ruler on our side, and it's impossible for two Rulers to appear simultaneously in a single Holy Grail War, so Jeanne d'Arc probably wasn't brought forth via Proper Summoning."
Chiron shook his head. During their previous encounter, he had managed to catch a glimpse of that Beast. She was a relatively petite girl in white, sporting a pair of giant horns. Going solely by appearances, she was actually quite cute, but the Spirit Origin that struck fear even into him was undeniably real. He suspected that if an actual fight broke out, all the servants here combined—even with the presence of two powerful servants like the Hero of Charity and the Dragon Slayer—would still be no match for her.
"Given Jeanne d'Arc's personality, it is indeed highly unlikely for her to act as the enemy's vanguard. There are two possibilities: one is that she isn't the real Jeanne d'Arc, and the other is that the Beast possesses an Authority akin to mind control. Either way, securing and detaining Jeanne d'Arc first is the right move."
"We need to get Jeanne d'Arc under control before the Beast reappears, right?"
Atalante nodded. The true great war was still to come; there was no rush to settle their score right now.
"Since ranged attacks are ineffective, let's leave it to the Classes with higher mobility. Our Rider... oh, there's no need to hide his identity anymore. Your student, Achilles, has already gone ahead to intercept her. Shouldn't the Black Faction's Rider be heading out soon too?"
"Our Rider, huh..."
Chiron revealed an indescribable look. How was he supposed to explain that Astolfo was currently infatuated with a homunculus? "I'm afraid he won't be able to make it for a while, and even Assassin cannot be deployed. Their originally designated Master is currently missing."
"So your Assassin can't be deployed either."
Atalante sighed helplessly. With only two highly mobile Classes available, it seemed the current offensive would have to rely on Achilles alone.
-
"What a sorry state you're in, 'my' self."
A familiar voice came from behind Jeanne d'Arc. If it had been any other voice, she wouldn't have stopped in her tracks. She still hadn't figured out the true purpose of that irregularly summoned Ruler, so she couldn't just die here in vain. But she simply couldn't ignore this voice; although the tone was different, it was unmistakably her own.
Jeanne d'Arc looked back, and a "Jeanne d'Arc" who looked exactly like her—save for a different color palette and hair color—had appeared behind her.
"Who... are you?!"
Jeanne d'Arc grew vigilant and subconsciously used True Name Discernment, but the feedback from the True Name Discernment completely shocked her. Because the person across from her was undeniably also Jeanne d'Arc.
"You're me!?"
"It seems you don't have the relevant memories."
Jalter was deeply disappointed. She had thought this Jeanne d'Arc would be the same one who had acted alongside Chaldea's party back then.
"Well, that's no fun, but it's close enough. So, how does it feel to be betrayed by a saint? What's it like to be slandered again, to be accused of being a Witch once more? Are you angry? Do you feel hatred?"
Although she didn't know which version of herself the other party was, the other party must have seen her in her current state. Facing "herself," Jeanne d'Arc honestly gave her reply.
"Naturally, there is no anger, because what they say is the truth; they just refuse to believe my explanation. As for hatred, naturally there is none. They are also fighting for humanity, so how could I hate them?"
"Hmph, what a rigid answer, exactly like a Saintess!"
Jalter gave a cold snort. Although she had expected it, hearing Jeanne say it out loud still made her extremely dissatisfied.
"Does it not matter even if they accuse you of trumped-up crimes again? Can't you be a bit more honest and admit that you were not a Saintess while alive, and that they only put on a show of making amends after you died!"
As Jalter spoke, she ended up getting angry herself. As long as Jeanne nodded, she would once again raise the flames of anger. She had chosen to give up previously only because this anger did not belong to Jeanne d'Arc.
"But I did indeed receive a divine revelation. No matter what they say, there is no way to change the facts."
Though Jeanne was illiterate, she was undeniably a Saintess. She looked at Jalter, who had posed the question, with confusion, feeling that this version of herself seemed a little strange.
I'm out of options. Should I just let her get killed?
The thought of having come here to defend this version of herself left Jalter feeling utterly helpless.
"Didn't you already know this would be the outcome?" Jiang You mused, figuring Jalter must have retained memories of their first encounter. Hadn't they already had similar conversations?
"Well, I was hoping for a miracle," Jalter sighed, leaning against a tree. "I'm not her, and I can never be her."
As the black-haired youth stepped out from the shadows, Jeanne immediately called out his name.
"Mr. Jiang You?"
"Ah, so you recognize me but not yourself, huh?" Jalter clicked her tongue in annoyance.
"You know me... that means you're the Jeanne from my side. That makes things much easier."
Jiang You had only summoned Jeanne twice; they had never met elsewhere. Therefore, anyone who recognized him must be the Jeanne he had summoned.
"You... how did you end up here?"
Jeanne suddenly grew stiff, appearing even more tense than during their previous escape.
"Why are you speaking so formal?" Jalter asked, puzzled as she stared at her white-clad counterpart. Jeanne d'Arc never used honorifics, and Jiang You wasn't even her Master.
"Because... because Mr. Jiang You was the one who commanded me before, which is pretty much the same as a Master."
Jiang You was indeed puzzled. Most servants never spoke about things beyond the game, but Jeanne had mentioned experiencing relatively little at the time. He had initially suspected it was a mission trigger or an Easter egg, but after all they'd been through together, her continued use of honorifics felt increasingly strange.
Just as Jiang You was about to press for answers, an uninvited guest barged into their conversation.
"So that's why you suddenly stopped. Turns out you have allies here."
A green-haired servant burst into their midst with lightning speed.
"Black? White? How are there two of you? And an unfamiliar male servant... Your presence feels off too."
"Achilles' heel?"
The highly recognizable hair color and scarf allowed Jiang You to immediately recognize the newcomer.
"You spotted my weakness at first glance? It seems being too famous isn't exactly a good thing."
Achilles subconsciously moved his spear to block his back. Jiang You gave him a bad feeling; although his aura was faint, the sense of danger hadn't diminished at all. "Since you already know my name, shouldn't you also state yours? I don't want to defeat someone without even knowing who they are."
It would be best to obtain information about the enemy, but Achilles hadn't actually held out much hope; it was just a customary remark. Unexpectedly, the other party nodded in agreement.
"Jiang You."