If the Jeanne in his memories was a gentle and considerate younger sister with kindness that transcended ordinary people,
Then—
The "Jeanne" before Ian gave him the feeling of being the complete opposite.
Cold and ruthless.
Her words and actions both revealed an extremely cruel nature.
Anything she hated had to be completely eradicated.
This was something that could never be associated with the Jeanne in his memories.
But at this very moment, they were truly combined, with no trace of separation.
How... could things have turned out like this?
Ian looked at the "Jeanne" before him, falling into a pit of disbelief.
Completely different from the man's state of confusion due to his past memories, Mashu at this moment appeared incredibly clear-headed.
Because her intuition was telling her that this girl dressed in black was definitely not a good person!
And her attitude towards Ian proved this point beyond any doubt.
"Who are you?!" Mashu gripped her Noble Phantasm, the giant shield, tightly, looking at the uninvited guest with a tense expression.
"Why are you here?!" she demanded, her violet eyes narrowed.
"..." The "Jeanne" who had been questioned by Mashu was first taken aback, then the corners of her lips curled up slightly.
She seemed to have found something she really liked to do.
"Oh right... I don't think I've formally introduced myself to you yet, have I?" she said, a hint of amusement in her voice.
With a swish, the self-proclaimed Jeanne raised the black flag in her hand towards the sky.
The flag surface bearing the mark of the dragon quickly fluttered in the wind, as if gaining true life.
"Listen—" she announced, her voice ringing out.
"I am Jeanne... the Dragon Witch who seeks revenge on France."
"This is what the people here call me—and I think this title is quite fitting," she added, a cruel smile playing on her lips.
"What...?"
"Jeanne?" Hearing this name, Mashu was completely taken aback.
Because she knew what the name "Jeanne" meant.
It was the existence revered by the people of France as the "Saint Maiden," the one who led them to reclaim their homeland.
And now, she was going to seek revenge on this land?!
No matter how she thought about it, this was extremely wrong.
And at this moment, Ian, on the other hand, had come back to his senses.
His situation was completely different from Mashu's.
As Jeanne's elder brother, he had seen Jeanne's true appearance—it was a face almost identical to the one before him.
This also meant that the previous assumption was completely correct.
The Singularity here did indeed have a qualified third party—that was this self-proclaimed "Dragon Witch," the Black Jeanne.
Because she had the title of Dragon Witch, she was able to control the dragons that she shouldn't have been able to command;
At the same time, as Jeanne, it was indeed possible for her to harbor some resentment towards Domremy Village.
However—
If the situation was really as he had deduced, the problem would be even more complicated than before.
First and foremost, where did this second Jeanne come from?
But before Ian could take the time to think this problem through, the Black Jeanne standing in front of them spoke again:
"Alright."
"I've already introduced myself once according to your request," she said, her golden eyes glinting.
The Black Jeanne's gaze swept past Mashu and landed on Ian.
"In exchange, hand that man over to me now."
"I... will turn him into my Servant," she declared, pointing her black flag towards Ian.
"..." Although she wasn't entirely clear about where the Jeanne before her had come from,
There was one thing Mashu was very clear about.
That was that taking Ian away from her like this was absolutely unacceptable!
"You can't!" Mashu exclaimed, her voice filled with determination.
"Senpai... would never become anyone's Servant!" she declared firmly.
"Oh?" Hearing Mashu's words, the Black Jeanne shifted her gaze back to her.
"Judging by what you're saying... are you planning to stop me?" she asked, a hint of amusement in her voice.
"Isn't that obvious?!" Mashu replied, her voice still very firm despite her nervousness.
She held her giant shield and directly stood in front of Ian.
"I will absolutely not let anyone hurt Senpai!" she declared, her violet eyes blazing with determination.
The moment the girl finished speaking, she found that the Black Jeanne, along with the black flag, had disappeared from her sight.
No—!
She hadn't disappeared!
She had moved at an incredibly fast speed!
In just the blink of an eye, she had already arrived in front of Mashu.
A sneer reached the girl's ears.
"Heh."
"I suggest that before you say such things... you'd better see if you have the corresponding strength," the Black Jeanne mocked, her golden eyes glinting.
"Otherwise, it would be very embarrassing to be instantly killed," she added, her voice laced with disdain.
"What?!" Mashu's eyes widened upon hearing this.
In the next moment, the Black Jeanne held her flag and thrust it straight towards the pink-haired girl's body.
This was no ordinary flag, but a weapon adorned with sharp spikes!
She was going to pierce through her body and kill her directly!
However—
Mashu was no longer the Servant without any fighting power she once was.
The experience in Singularity F had given her a lot of experience.
Therefore—
The moment the Black Jeanne thrust the flag towards her, Mashu had already reacted and knew what kind of defensive measures she should take.
"Whether I have the strength or not, I will protect Senpai!" Mashu declared, her voice filled with unwavering resolve.
"This is my promise to him!" she added, her violet eyes burning with determination.
Expressing her feelings, the pink-haired girl forcefully swung her giant shield.
Clang! It was perfectly blocked!
The Black Jeanne's flag directly struck Mashu's shield, emitting a crisp sound.
Mashu breathed a sigh of relief.
She could feel that the Jeanne before her was much stronger than herself—thankfully, she had defended.
However, before Mashu could feel happy for even a moment, the Black Jeanne's sneer came over again.
"I told you," she said, her golden eyes mocking.
"Without enough strength... it will be embarrassing," she repeated, her voice laced with disdain.
"What?!" Before Mashu understood what these words meant, the Black Jeanne's flag became infused with a large amount of magical power, and then burst into scarlet flames.
The previously balanced situation was broken in an instant.
This was not a situation that Mashu could handle.
Boom! She was sent flying out, rolling several times on the ground before stopping after crashing into a tree.
Seeing this scene, the Black Jeanne showed a triumphant smile.
"I told you... don't think about protecting others if you don't have enough strength," she mocked, her golden eyes glinting with victory.
"That will only make you a burden and conversely cause trouble for others," she added, her voice filled with disdain.
Twirling the black flag in her hand, the Black Jeanne walked towards Mashu, preparing to deliver a fatal blow.
She was going to use this to conclude the battle that had ended in one move.
"I thought you were quite capable... but you fell in just a few seconds?" she taunted, her golden eyes looking down at the fallen Mashu.
But just at this moment—
The Black Jeanne felt her hand being grabbed by someone.
She turned her head back and saw that it was Ian who had reacted.
"What are you doing?!" the Black Jeanne roared. "Let go of my hand!"
"I'm going to kill this ungrateful person!" she declared, her golden eyes blazing with anger.
"I will absolutely not let you do such a thing," Ian replied without any hesitation, his grip tightening on her hand.
"Besides—" Ian continued, his gaze hardening.
"Who exactly are you?!" he demanded, his voice filled with suspicion.
Ian knew that he was provoking the Black Jeanne by doing this.
But for Mashu's sake, he had to do it.
It was one thing to not react quickly enough just now.
But now he couldn't pretend that he hadn't seen anything!
However, what Ian didn't know was that the Black Jeanne was now very excited.
She had already felt that this powerful man inexplicably suited her taste in her bones.
And this kind of personality now completely met her needs.
"It seems you weren't listening at all when I was talking just now," the Black Jeanne said, a hint of amusement in her voice.
"But it doesn't matter—!" she added, completely oblivious to her double standards.
She looked at the man holding her hand, and a hint of special attention appeared in her golden eyes.
"I can tell you again," she said, her voice softening slightly.
"Listen—!"
"I am Jeanne... the Dragon Witch who will seek revenge on France!" she declared, her voice ringing with conviction.
"How about it?! Did you hear me clearly this time?!" she asked, her golden eyes sparkling.
"..." Ian looked at the inexplicably excited Black Jeanne, his expression becoming somewhat complicated for a moment.
First and foremost, there was no doubt that the Black Jeanne before him had absolutely no difference in appearance from his younger sister Jeanne in his memory.
If he had to say, only the color of her hair and eyes were slightly different.
But—
If he temporarily disregarded the similarity in appearance, the her before him became vastly different from the her in his memory.
To describe it briefly.
The Black Jeanne before him was more like a child—the way she couldn't wait to introduce herself just now could prove this point.
How could things have turned out like this?
After thinking it over again and again, Ian spoke once more:
"Are you really sure you're Jeanne?" he asked, his brow furrowed in doubt.
"You—!" The Black Jeanne clearly became a little impatient. "How many times do you want me to say it?!" she exclaimed, her golden eyes flashing with annoyance.
"I am Jeanne!" she declared, her voice rising.
"I am the Dragon Witch who will take revenge on the entire France!" she added, her tone filled with conviction.
"If you still can't remember, I'll burn you right now!" she threatened, shaking the black flag in her hand, looking very agitated.
She seemed to be very concerned about people not remembering her title.
Realizing this, Ian suddenly had an idea.
"So you're the Dragon Witch... I'll remember that," Ian said gently, a soft smile on his lips.
"Hmm, that's more like it! So—" The Black Jeanne hadn't finished speaking when she suddenly froze.
It wasn't that she had forgotten what she was going to say.
But—
Ian had patted her head.
The man let go of the Black Jeanne's hand that he had been holding, and instead gently stroked her head.
His fingers rubbed back and forth through the girl's smooth silver hair, tracing lines.
"So soft... as expected of Jeanne's hair," the man's voice was gentle and affectionate.
"Eh?" The Black Jeanne, who had been patted on the head, slightly opened her mouth, taking a while to react.
She immediately blushed, then roared,
"What are you doing?!" she demanded, her golden eyes wide with surprise and a hint of anger.
"Why are you touching my head?!" she exclaimed.
"..." Ian smiled calmly.
"Sorry, it seems you don't really like being patted on the head," he said gently, his gaze soft.
"My apologies," he added, preparing to move his hand away from her head.
But just at this moment, something unexpected happened again.
The Black Jeanne grabbed the hand on her head, then glared at Ian, speaking with a hint of resentment:
"What are you doing?!" she demanded, her golden eyes narrowed.
"I didn't say I didn't like this feeling... what I want you to answer is why you're touching my head!" she insisted.
"Hmm?"
"Hmm what?! Hurry up and answer me!" she pressed, her golden eyes flashing with impatience.
"..." Realizing that the Black Jeanne really wanted to know this question, Ian hesitated for a moment, then spoke.
"If you ask about that... it's probably because you reminded me of someone," he explained gently.
"Reminded you of someone?"
"Yes," Ian nodded. "Someone very similar to you," he confirmed.
"Someone very similar to me?" The Black Jeanne first frowned slightly, but soon showed an expression of understanding.
"You're talking about... the other Jeanne, right?" she asked, her golden eyes glinting with insight.
"..." Ian's pupils dilated slightly.
He had originally thought that this Black Jeanne didn't know the Jeanne he remembered, his younger sister.
But now it seemed—
The situation was completely opposite to what he had imagined.
"You... know her?" Ian asked, his voice filled with surprise.
"Of course, I know her," a hint of Nostalgia appeared in the Black Jeanne's eyes.
"Isn't she the famous Saint Maiden?" she asked, her voice laced with sarcasm.
"Compared to a Dragon Witch like me... we are completely opposite existences," she added, her golden eyes flashing.
"..." Ian could clearly feel that the Black Jeanne had some personal feelings when she said these words.
He realized that the Black Jeanne before him might be hating his younger sister Jeanne in his memory for some reason.
Wait—!
Since the Black Jeanne said that, could it be that she had already met the other herself?!
Before the old problem was solved, a new problem rushed in.
Ian felt his head was about to be filled with these things, and he couldn't help but feel a little anxious.
This emotion was quickly noticed by the Black Jeanne before him.
She grabbed the hand from the man on her head, then took it down and held it tightly in her palm.
"You... do you really want to know what kind of relationship I have with her?" she asked, her golden eyes looking directly into his.
Facing the Black Jeanne's incredibly straightforward question, Ian hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
"Yes... I want to know," he admitted.
"Alright," the Black Jeanne sneered. "I'm not a heartless person either," she said, her golden eyes glinting.
"If you want to know, of course I can tell you," she added.
"However—" The Black Jeanne looked at the man in front of her, moving her body closer.
Her beautiful golden eyes were now staring straight at him.
"As an exchange for the secret... you have to become my Servant first," she declared, her voice firm.
"..." Before Ian could answer the Black Jeanne's question, a groan came from the other side.
He saw that Mashu, who had been knocked down, was now struggling to get up again.
Although she was panting heavily, her voice was still incredibly firm.
"Jeanne... let go of my Senpai!" she exclaimed, her violet eyes filled with determination.
"..." The Black Jeanne turned her head, and a hint of hatred appeared in her eyes.
"How annoying," she muttered, her golden eyes narrowing.
"Even though she's clearly not strong enough, she keeps talking to herself," she complained, her voice filled with irritation.
"I might as well just kill you, that would be quieter!" she declared, her golden eyes flashing with malice.
Seeing that the Black Jeanne was about to launch another fatal attack on Mashu.
And knowing that she had the information he needed.
Ian directly grabbed her hand and then said,
"Don't move!"
"I... I'll go with you now!" he declared, his voice resolute.