Chapter 196: Jeanne Sings Together
At that moment, the principal of the campus was laughing and talking with several middle-aged male guests who had come from outside, emerging from the school's restaurant. Since they were her invited guests, she had specially asked the head chef to prepare a grand banquet to entertain them.
"Then please make yourselves comfortable. I'll go say hello to the students," the principal said to the middle-aged men.
"Of course, Principal, don't worry about us," the middle-aged men replied kindly.
"This event here is really well organized."
"Yes, the students' culinary skills displayed this morning were also truly impressive. Especially the top two, I think their dishes were as delicious as the signature dishes in a Michelin restaurant."
"Mhm. I hope the afternoon's activities are as interesting as the cooking. That would generate a very good reaction," said a man wearing a baseball cap, pulling a digital video camera out of his backpack.
"Indeed. It's a morale booster, a good tonic for Paris, which has been somewhat dispirited due to this strange illness."
Meanwhile, the principal walked over to the cooking stations and found Shirou.
"My, who is this lovely girl?" The principal looked at Jeanne curiously. For some reason, the more she looked, the more she felt a connection, and the more she liked her. It was a pity such a child wasn't one of her students.
"Ah, she is a friend of mine," Shirou explained.
"Oh, really? Then are you going to participate in the activity with Shirou? I have a suitable dress for you here," the principal said.
"Activity? With Shirou?" Jeanne asked, looking at the principal, who was smiling kindly.
"Yes. Everything else is prepared, but Shirou wasn't notified this morning, and it might be difficult for him to do it alone," the principal nodded and said.
"Is that so? Then it wouldn't hurt to keep him company for a while, and I'm quite free anyway," Jeanne said, raising an eyebrow and glancing at the boy next to her.
"That's great! I'll register you right now. What's your name?" The principal happily picked up a pen and a notebook.
"Jeanne. Just write Jeanne," the silver-haired girl said.
"Jeanne, is it? What a lovely name. Done. Shirou and Jeanne, you'll be on stage for the fourth performance," the principal finished writing and closed the notebook.
"Wait? Principal? What exactly is this performance you're talking about? My cooking demonstration is already over, isn't it?" Shirou asked in confusion. When the principal told him "good luck" this morning, wasn't she referring to the cooking competition?
"Of course! It's the singing competition! Did Hiratsuka not tell you about this? She already signed both you and Miss Nakiri up!" the principal said.
"Singing?!" Shirou exclaimed in surprise.
"That's right. You must have slept in this morning. Everyone was notified this morning. Look over there, I've even invited the TV station," the principal said, pointing to a few people with cameras filming something.
Shirou looked in the direction the principal was pointing and indeed saw them. They were wearing small earpieces, and it wasn't the kind of show where a pretty lady with a microphone interviews people followed by a large cameraman.
Instead, it was a middle-aged man in a suit wearing a small ear-mic, followed by another man in a hat holding a handheld digital video camera, who wouldn't look out of place as a parent.
"Now that you mention it, I did see them queuing at various cooking stations before, but since many people were also recording with their phones, I completely ignored them," Shirou said.
"See? I instructed them not to alarm the students, so they hid themselves. All the footage they captured shows the most natural state of things.
At noon, they even complimented you and Miss Nakiri on being photogenic and said they would give you plenty of good camera time. So, perform well later! This is a great opportunity to promote our international school!" the principal encouraged, patting the boy's shoulder as she instructed him.
"Ah, Jeanne, you should also do your best. See you later," the principal smiled and quickly walked away.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Shizuka Hiratsuka, who had changed into a snow-white evening gown like Snow White, revealed a successful, witch-like smirk. "Hehehe. I already sang yesterday. Shirou, Erina, did you really think you could escape? I'll drag you onto the stage even if I have to use force!"
At this moment, the blonde girl, Erina, walked over after a brief conversation with the principal at her cooking station, her hands behind her back.
"Teacher Hiratsuka, you've taken the liberty of arranging work for us again," Shirou said helplessly, looking at Erina, who shared his plight and was walking toward him.
"Hmph. In order to research how to create dishes suitable for eating while listening to music, I have taken lessons in the violin. Let me play a piece of music that will greatly stimulate everyone's appetite!
But Shirou-senpai! If you don't know anything, just wait to embarrass yourself!" Erina confidently pulled out a violin case from behind her back, smiling as she looked at the boy.
At this moment, the blonde girl wore an arrogant yet playful, mischievous grin. She had come over precisely to show off. Although the boy seemed flawless when it came to cooking, seeing him make a fool of himself in other areas would be a joy.
She usually didn't care much about things outside of cooking, but when it came to the boy, for some reason, she was very interested in everything, good or bad.
"Shirou-senpai! If I win this music competition, you won't have the face to let me call you 'Senpai' anymore, will you?" Erina asked, beaming with a sense of superiority.
"Hah, you really do love this competition thing, don't you?" Shirou said helplessly.
"Shirou will be performing with me, so you should worry about yourself," Jeanne stepped forward, crossing her arms, and said.
"I have no interest in women who pop up out of nowhere. Please don't speak to me," Erina said coldly.
"What!? Are you looking for a fight?" Jeanne glared at the girl and said angrily.
"Wait, Erina. This is Jeanne-san. She's actually the Servant Jeanne who fought alongside me and is here to help out now," Shirou introduced them.
"Jeanne? Now that you mention it, you do look somewhat familiar. The black one? You're a rather rude woman," Erina retorted without backing down, summoning the spirit of Tomoe Gozen within her to stand firm, her competitive aura soaring.
"Do you have a problem with me? I'll burn you!" Jeanne glared at the blonde girl. Behind her back, invisible to ordinary people, a raging demonic flame of anger surged high.
"Burn? Do you think you're the only one who can set fires?" Erina glared back. In the unseen space behind the illusion of Tomoe Gozen, iron-blooded flames of the battlefield seemed to rise.
Sparks seemed to fly in the space where the two girls' eyes met. It felt as if their background flames, if they were to materialize, would be more terrifying than the fire monster they encountered last night, capable of instantly incinerating the entire school.
"Um... Jeanne, this is Nakiri Erina-san. She is a partner who possesses a Servant. She also helped us a lot here," Shirou introduced the two girls.
"Shirou! Shut up! (x2)" The two girls shouted in unison.
"That kind of thing, you'd understand just by sensing the magic power. But since we can't fight here, I'll just beat you in the competition!!" Jeanne glared at Erina and said.
"Hmph... I look forward to it. I'm going to the music room to practice now. Goodbye," Erina said, examining the silver-haired girl.
"Even with practice, you'll still only be that good," Jeanne glared back and said.
"Hmph! (x2)" Erina and Jeanne turned their heads away in opposite directions, hmphed, and went their separate ways.
After watching Erina walk away, Jeanne turned back to the boy and asked, "Shirou! What should we do? I can't sing at all! Should we try to stop the competition somehow?!"
"It's okay! Your voice is beautiful, Jeanne, so if you just remember the tune, it will sound wonderful when you sing it," Shirou said, holding the silver-haired girl's shoulders and looking at her very earnestly.
"Is... is that so? If you say so, Shirou, then I'll try," Jeanne said, her face slightly flushed, turning her head away as she agreed.
"Yeah, let's do our best together~!" Shirou smiled sincerely at the girl. Yes, at a time like this, he couldn't possibly abandon an important partner and go on stage to embarrass himself alone.
"But what exactly should we do now?" Jeanne asked.
"Since it's a voting competition, we must gain the approval of the tourists, and I heard Parisians are quite proud, so singing an English song against a local one probably won't work.
So, we have to find a way to sing a French song. If only we had a teacher here who was good at French and knowledgeable about Paris," Shirou said with some difficulty. Although his pronunciation was fine, singing was another matter entirely.
"That's right! Shirou, I almost forgot. This guy asked me to contact you when I came here. He seems to have something to say to you." Jeanne pulled out a phone she received from Chaldea and activated the FGO system.
On the screen was the quiet French gentleman they fought with in the dream world.
"Hello, Monsieur Sanson, were you looking for me for something?" Shirou asked.
"Actually, I have a favor to ask you," Sanson said, looking at the boy.
"I see. Alright. If it's possible in my world," Shirou nodded in agreement.
Regarding the events that took place in the dream world, the White Queen Marie would not have the memories of that world, and if he were to meet Louis XVI again, it wouldn't be the current him.
A Heroic Spirit summoned as a Servant becomes an independent entity distinct from the original from the moment they are summoned. Therefore, the same Heroic Spirit can appear in the same place in different aspects and different classes.
Once the physical body acquired upon summoning dissipates and the contract is terminated, they return to the Throne of Heroes. Everything experienced is only recorded, like a diary or a book, and even if they read it, their thoughts and feelings at the time would be completely different.
If a Servant is summoned at a Singularity or under conditions where the Counter Force's influence is weakened, such as Human Order Incineration, Human Order Freezing, or the Moon-CELL, they might retain some memories, but they would be as vague as a dream.
"Ultimately, I feel like I was only unilaterally forgiven. After the previous events, I realize I still haven't properly apologized. I must do something for the Queen and the Emperor," Sanson said seriously.
Although he often maintained a cold, emotionless expression, Sanson thought a lot internally and still felt guilt. It was complicated. He personally executed the Emperor and oversaw the Queen's execution, but he couldn't say he gave them a proper send-off. In that environment, his job as an executioner wasn't properly completed, but the Queen had forgiven him, and the Emperor regarded him as a friend.
At least this time, he wanted to give them a proper send-off, but he couldn't think of a good way.
"I understand. Then let's think of a way together," Shirou agreed. Since he was asked for this favor, Shirou had no reason to refuse.
He had become accustomed to corpses since he was very young. He could generally tell if a collapsed person was alive or dead and if they could be saved just by looking.
Due to the immense shock, he couldn't believe in the Buddha like Issei, so after Kiritsugu's death, he didn't leave a spirit tablet or offer incense daily or a bowl of food occasionally, like in other families.
Nor would he pray for God to welcome them to heaven. When they died, they died.
But for Heroic Spirits and Servants, death is not the end but an endless cycle of reincarnation.
Shirou and Jeanne walked to an empty corner, and Sanson, who was in Chaldea, was summoned into the boy's body through the FGO system.
After the Possession Summoning was completed, Sanson hid his Spiritual Dress and concealed himself, entrusting his power to the boy's command.
Because of Sanson's full cooperation, the synchronization rate reached one hundred percent. Shirou could freely use Sanson's abilities. In this process, he also understood the Servant's innermost feelings, and Shirou now understood the thoughts of this cold-on-the-outside, warm-on-the-inside man.
"We can use a guitar, right?" Shirou asked the Servant in his mind.
"Yes. You can decide the specifics," Sanson replied.
"I know. Then I'll do what I'm thinking. Let me borrow your strength," Shirou said.
"That's fine. Thank you, Shirou," Sanson said.
"No, Uncle Emperor Louis also helped me," Shirou said.
"Then let's practice. If we practice well, I can definitely do it," Jeanne said.
"Alright. First, let's listen to the song we're going to sing," Shirou said, projecting earbuds, connecting them to his phone, and finding the French song.
Then, Shirou and Jeanne found an empty chair and sat down. They shared one earbud, each wearing one, and listened to the song three times in its entirety, then began practicing together, singing along.
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