Gilles: "Holy Jeanne! Come, let us, the final boss, have a heartfelt talk!"
Core
"Hahahahahaha!! I'm yawning! Did you think mere maggots could halt my charge—?!"
Their relentless advance continues inside the castle. The Gilgil Machine scatters, crushes, and obliterates the starfish-like demons paving the floor—!!
Straight ahead, unswervingly, in a beeline—charging with the pride Okita once spoke of (or so it feels), they blaze down the long corridor, pressing forward with unstoppable momentum—!
"To think the day would come when I'd steal the Conqueror King's thunder! Truly a rout! Crushing after conquest, reigning after domination! Is this not the way of a king?! Hahahahahaha!!"
End this before they regroup! No more madness for France—!
"Ruler! Is this the right path?!"
"Yes! I sense the Dragon Witch! Charge straight ahead!"
"Go, Gilgil Machine! Super Dash—!!"
"Rikka-kun, don't go delinquent on me! Please!"
"I'm not stealing anything, it's fine!"
"What's fine?!"
"Alright, we're storming the stairs! To distant domination—roar, Gilgil Machine—!!!"
"Wabuh!! Wabubububu!! It's flying, it's flying! Splatters, blood, flesh, all sorts of stuff flying at me—!! Wabububububu!!"
Elisabeth screams. The VIP seat has no magical barrier—!
"Endure with a smile!! You're an idol! Sprinkle smiles even through hardship, sign autographs for filthy fans—that's an idol's duty! Even if nausea festers in your gut—!!"
"Real idols have it rough! At least Magi☆Mari's a virtual idol, so she's perfect!"
"Fou (Is she, though?)"
"Idols have it tough! I had no idea—!!"
Covered in grime, the idol still shines.
"Stairs! Let's run from here!"
"Hm! Well done, Gilgil Machine! I'll fill you with premium ether back in Chaldea! Dismount, everyone!"
"Dwaa—!! Don't stop so suddenly, Gorgeous—!!!"
Elisabeth, rope snapping, goes flying. Sorry, Elisabeth! Truly sorry for prioritizing speed!
"Now—let's go!"
"They've arrived… Very well, I, the unworthy Gilles de Rais, shall welcome them, Jeanne…!"
—
"It's up ahead, right?!"
"Yes! The Dragon Witch is there!"
Confirming with Jeanne while sprinting down the long corridor, the group runs at full speed.
"Haa, haa, what's with this…?! Is being a variety idol this tough?!"
"Degawa-san's pretty amazing, huh…"
"Who's that…?!"
"You don't know? The gutsiest guy on TV."
"No time for chatter! Servant signature ahead!"
"That's—!"
A towering man in a sinister robe, holding a grotesque book woven from human skin—an eerie figure.
—It clicks. He's Jeanne's aide, her second-in-command…! Then…!
"—I've been waiting, Jeanne and her—"
Gilles begins to speak—or tries to.
"Ruler!!"
"Yes! —Stand aside, Gilles—!!"
Jeanne leaps forward with a wide stride—
"Fah—!!?"
"Not now, you're later—!!"
Aiming for Gilles's abyss-staring eyes—she unleashes a full-force eye-gouge—!!
"FAAHH—!!!!?"
She jams her fingers into his eyes, hurling her prayer to knock him aside—!!
Poor Gilles de Rais tumbles, spinning wildly as he's blown away—!!
"Elisabeth-san, Kiyohime-san! Hold Gilles back! We're going for the Witch!"
"U-Understood…"
"Okay, leave it to me…"
"…?"
The two are visibly baffled—no wonder, after that spine-chilling, brutal move…
"—I spurred you on, but… were you always this merciless, girl…?"
"???"
"Forget it. There's our target, right?"
"Yes! Now, all questions will be answered—!"
She places her hand on the sealed door—!
"Dragon Witch Jeanne!!"
"—You've come, my other self."
Once again, the white Jeanne and the black Jeanne face each other.
"Gilles…"
"He's been subdued. Right now, I prioritized my questions for you."
"—Questions, now of all times?"
Jeanne glances over.
"—Go ahead. Speak what you feel. As if bidding farewell."
"…Yes."
Nodding, she faces the Dragon Witch.
"—Do you remember 'the one who raised you'?"
"—What?"
The Dragon Witch freezes, as if struck by a peashooter.
"A simple question. More specifically—do you remember the softness of straw?"
"What… are you… saying…?"
The Dragon Witch stiffens, mouth opening, but no answer comes.
"Marie told me to convey what must be said. These questions come from the Hero King's words."
"If you are me, you could never forget. No matter how vivid the battlefield's memories, my days as a country girl far outweigh them. —That's why you rose in despair and hatred against betrayal."
"I, I—"
—I see. That's it.
That Jeanne has no memories. Despite lacking the memories that shape soul and personality, she acted as the Witch—a contradiction.
—All things in this world are crafted by predecessors. Only souls arise naturally—
A voice echoes from the vessel. —A Witch without memories. That means…
"Exquisitely crafted, but it seems the final touch of replication failed. 'That time wasn't spent together,' after all."
—That Jeanne… is a Jeanne created by someone—!
"—Shut up! Even without memories, I'm still Jeanne!"
She brandishes her flag, roaring with fury.
"Yes, you are you. —But I'll defeat you not with anger, but with pity!"
"Keep talking—! Faith and fury, hope and despair—let's see which prevails!!"
"Need assistance, Ruler?"
"Thank you, but no—I'll settle this myself!"
"Regret it—!! 'Roar forth'—"
"'My God is—'"
Jeanne and Jeanne—ignite the final clash—!!
"'My fury'—!!"
"'Here with me—'!!"
Witch and Saint, the moment of reckoning—!
"Jeanne… Oh, that admonishing strike I'd give myself… You're unmistakably… Jeanne…"
"She okay…?"
"Who knows…"
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