The atmosphere suddenly became a bit strange at this moment.
Rather than the Black Jeanne interrogating her subordinate Servant as a Master would,
She seemed more like a little girlfriend who had just witnessed her boyfriend coming out of a love hotel with someone else across the street and was now getting worked up.
However—
Even with this misconception in mind, Ian still felt the faint hint of killing intent in the Dragon Witch's words.
In this situation, it was naturally impossible to truthfully tell her what he and Atalante had just done in the room.
After all, if the Dragon Witch really got angry, no one could predict what would happen.
Fortunately, so many things had happened tonight—there were countless excuses to explain this situation.
Ian thought for a moment and already had a suitable answer.
Or rather—
The most basic answer.
"I went to comfort Atalante," the man said.
"Comfort her?!" Hearing this, the Black Jeanne became even more agitated than before.
She slammed Ian against the wall, and a very obvious urgency appeared in her beautiful golden eyes.
"Why did you comfort her?! Did she ask you to comfort her?! When did you start comforting her?! Why didn't you tell me you were going to comfort her before you did?! What was your way of comforting her?! For how long?! How many times?! What was her reaction after you comforted her?! Was it good or bad?!" the Black Jeanne bombarded him with questions, her voice filled with suspicion.
"Tell me quickly!" she demanded, her golden eyes looking at him intently.
"..." Honestly, despite preparing himself mentally, the Black Jeanne's reaction still exceeded Ian's expectations.
This was the first time he had seen her get so agitated—asking so many questions in less than ten seconds.
It was a breathtaking display, and an abnormal situation.
At this moment, Ian couldn't help but feel fortunate that he had a reason to explain everything.
Otherwise, if he really had to face these questions, it would be the kind of situation that couldn't be explained clearly even after days and nights.
"Hold on a second," Ian said gently, his hands reaching up to stroke the Black Jeanne's head. This was an action she didn't dislike and even quite liked.
"Let me explain first," he added softly, his gaze unwavering.
"..." The Black Jeanne didn't directly respond to Ian, but the slightly gentler look in her eyes was enough to prove that she had acquiesced to his actions.
"Sigh," the man sighed, then began to explain.
"Just now... the defeated Carmilla escaped back here," Ian began, his voice calm.
"Eh?! Then where is she now?!" the Black Jeanne asked, her golden eyes widening in surprise.
"She disappeared," Ian replied somberly.
"To be precise, she disappeared in front of Atalante and me," he added, his gaze unwavering.
Ian's voice wasn't loud, but it was enough for her to understand what had happened tonight.
And although it was a bit malicious.
But the man felt that the Black Jeanne before him might not care much about Carmilla's death—this was just a timely excuse.
However, the Dragon Witch's reaction was almost the same as Atalante's.
Her expression became ferocious, her skin stretched taut, completely different from before.
"Who..." The Black Jeanne began, her voice low and dangerous.
"Who killed Carmilla?!" she roared, her voice filled with rage.
The Dragon Witch's roar echoed throughout the corridor.
It was a voice that could inspire fear, radiating waves of anger outwards.
Ian could feel the magical energy within the Black Jeanne surging wildly, as if she would burst into flames at any moment because of it.
She wasn't as heartless as she appeared on the surface, and was a Master who quite valued her subordinate Servants.
Hesitating for a moment, Ian still decided to tell the Black Jeanne Carmilla's last words.
"According to the words that Carmilla entrusted to Atalante and me—" Ian began, his voice calm.
"This was the result of her failed attempt to ambush 'the other you'," he explained, his gaze unwavering.
The Black Jeanne's pupils widened considerably in an instant, completely losing the girlfriend-like air from when she had "caught him in the act."
What replaced it was an almost insane shout.
"Aaaaaaaahhhhhhh—!!!!!!" The Black Jeanne screamed, her voice filled with rage.
"Where is that woman?! I'm going to kill her!!!!!!!!" she roared, her golden eyes blazing with fury.
Realizing that the Black Jeanne might go berserk on the spot if this continued, Ian wanted to stop things from going in that direction.
"Don't rush," Ian said gently, his hands still stroking her hair.
"There will definitely be a chance... for now, let's think about what we should do next, shall we?" he suggested calmly.
Perhaps, as Atalante had said, Ian was a very special existence for the Black Jeanne.
After the man made such a suggestion, the Dragon Witch's emotions gradually calmed down.
Then, she realized a problem.
"Then—" The Black Jeanne began, her brow furrowed in thought.
"Isn't Atalante's mood also very bad right now?!" she asked, her golden eyes filled with concern.
"No, I have to go see her!" the Black Jeanne declared, her voice filled with determination.
The Black Jeanne's ability to take action was as strong as ever.
As soon as this thought popped into her head, she had already directly bypassed the man before her and entered the little catgirl's room alone.
There was no other way.
Ian could only follow behind her, returning once again to the room he had just left not long ago.
"Atalante," the Black Jeanne called out.
"Eh?!" Hearing the Black Jeanne's voice, Atalante woke up from her drowsy state.
The catgirl looked at her Master, and Ian, the real "master" beside her, couldn't help but feel a little guilty.
She knew—
Under the covers, she was currently in the state of having just been trained by Ian and fallen asleep.
Not only did her fair body not have any covering, but there was also the man's residual magical energy between her legs.
It could be said that as long as it was discovered.
The Black Jeanne would immediately know that she and he had a relationship.
"Master... why are you here?" Atalante asked, her green eyes looking at the Black Jeanne with a hint of nervousness.
"I came to see you," the Black Jeanne replied, sitting down beside Atalante and speaking in a rather serious tone.
"You don't have to worry—!" the Black Jeanne declared, her golden eyes looking at Atalante with determination.
"Although Carmilla is dead, the rest of us will definitely be able to destroy France!" she added, her voice filled with conviction.
"..." Atalante didn't respond to the Black Jeanne's words, but moved her body back a little.
On the one hand, she was afraid that getting too close would let the other party smell something strange.
On the other hand, she couldn't face her Master—after all, she had used so many small tricks behind her back.
The Black Jeanne didn't know what Atalante was thinking in her heart at this moment.
She simply regarded this behavior of hers as anxiety caused by Carmilla's death.
The Dragon Witch pursed her lips.
Her breathing even quickened a bit.
Being a witch, she seemed to be thinking about how to pull the other party out of her current mood.
She glanced at Atalante, then at Ian, and suddenly thought of an idea.
And the Dragon Witch's next words completely exceeded the man's ability to predict.
The Black Jeanne looked at the catgirl before her and, with a very serious attitude, elaborated on what she had just thought of.
"Say, Atalante," the Black Jeanne began, her golden eyes looking at Atalante intently.
"Next time Ian and I are doing something comfortable, would you like to join us?" she asked, her voice filled with sincerity.
"..." "..." The atmosphere fell into endless silence in an instant.
Then, it was the catgirl's scream.
Her fair cheeks rapidly flushed alarmingly red within seconds of hearing those words.
"Master!!!" Atalante exclaimed, her green eyes wide with shock.
"What are you saying—?!" she demanded, her voice filled with disbelief.
"What do you mean by 'would you like to join us'?" Atalante asked, her green eyes looking at the Black Jeanne with confusion.
The Black Jeanne, whose mental state was extremely unstable, didn't realize the true meaning of Atalante's words.
She thought that the other party didn't understand what she meant by "that kind of thing," so she explained it again very seriously.
"It's when Ian uses his Noble Phantasm on me, you can also come and try it together," the Black Jeanne explained earnestly, her golden eyes looking at Atalante.
"That's not it!" The catgirl waved her hands repeatedly, her tail standing up straight due to excitement.
"Master, that's not what I meant!" Atalante exclaimed, her green eyes wide with panic.
"Then what do you mean?" The Black Jeanne looked at the Servant before her with a puzzled expression. "Tell me quickly," she urged, her golden eyes looking at Atalante intently.
This was an even more awkward situation than being caught in bed.
She had to confess why she wasn't willing to try his Noble Phantasm—but the actual situation was that she had just finished using it!
Atalante stammered for a long while before answering:
"Ian... is Master's Servant," Atalante finally managed to say, her green eyes looking down in shame.
"How could I use his Noble Phantasm together with Master?" she asked, her voice barely audible.
The catgirl felt extremely guilty as she said these words, but the Black Jeanne didn't notice at all.
Her focus was entirely on the question itself.
"What's wrong with that?" the Black Jeanne retorted, tilting her head slightly.
"Are you very concerned about it?" she asked, her golden eyes looking at Atalante intently.
"...Of course not!" Atalante replied quickly, shaking her head.
"Then I don't mind either," the Black Jeanne said, shrugging slightly.
After saying these words, the Dragon Witch looked at the man beside her again.
"Do you mind?" she asked Ian, her golden eyes looking at him expectantly.
"..." Atalante also looked at Ian upon hearing these words.
She was both a little afraid that he would say he minded, and a little afraid that he would say he didn't.
However, what the catgirl didn't know was—
The man's handling of such matters had long since reached a state of perfection.
He nodded with a smile.
"Of course not," Ian replied calmly, a faint smile on his lips.
"One or two, it's all the same to me... um, anyway, I'm fine with it," he added, his gaze unwavering.
Hearing the answer she wanted, the Dragon Witch showed a satisfied smile.
Her gaze thus returned to the catgirl before her.
"You don't mind, I don't mind, and he minds even less," the Black Jeanne summarized, her golden eyes looking at Atalante.
"Then why can't we do it?" she asked, tilting her head slightly in confusion.
"..." Atalante really didn't know how to refute this statement for a moment.
And more importantly—
She was a little tempted.
Finally, the catgirl nodded.
"I understand... since Master is willing to share, I... will accept!" Atalante declared, her green eyes filled with a mixture of shyness and determination.
"That's good," the Black Jeanne said, taking Ian's hand beside her.
"Then next time—"
"I'll call you, Atalante," the Black Jeanne promised, her golden eyes looking at the catgirl.
"Now, you should rest well," she added gently, patting Atalante's head.
The room once again returned to silence.
Atalante, having received permission, leaned against the headboard alone, gently exhaling hot air from her mouth.
Three people doing that kind of thing together?
What kind of position would that even be?
Many strange and wonderful images began to float in the catgirl's mind.
Those fantasies were so beautiful that she was deeply immersed in them, not even noticing the tide rushing back to the shore.
On the other side of the room.
The Black Jeanne, holding Ian's hand, didn't return to her room.
She took him, all the way up to the city wall—this was also the place where the man had just taken a walk with his little pet.
Ian couldn't help but feel a little curious about her choice.
"What are you going to..." Ian began, his brow furrowed in thought.
"Do what?" The Black Jeanne turned her head to look at the man, her expression temporarily returning to that of a little girlfriend from before.
"Can't I bring you here?" she asked playfully, tilting her head slightly.
"Of course not," Ian smiled slightly. "You can take me anywhere you want," he replied gently.
"I'm just a little curious why you suddenly wanted to do this," he added, his gaze unwavering.
"I don't know either," the Black Jeanne confessed softly, her golden eyes looking into the distance.
The Black Jeanne stopped in front of a section of the city wall.
She looked at the somewhat pale ground in the distance—it was a sign of the approaching sunrise.
"But I just wanted you to come here with me for a walk," she explained, her voice soft.
"..." Although she was the Dragon Witch who intended to destroy a country.
But looking at the Black Jeanne's slightly sorrowful profile, Ian couldn't help but feel a little sorry for her.
He couldn't tell whether this feeling was because she looked too much like Jeanne, or simply because of the feelings that had arisen from their time together.
But no matter which one it was—
The only thing he could do now was perfectly consistent, right?
The man hugged the Black Jeanne from behind and whispered softly in her ear.
"I see... I understand what you mean," Ian said gently, his arms wrapped around her.
Everything fell silent.
At this moment, if one could ignore the Black Jeanne's identity as the Dragon Witch.
Perhaps everyone who witnessed this scene would regard them standing on the city wall as a couple, right?
Drip.
A drop of tear fell to the ground.
Two clear tear tracks appeared on the Black Jeanne's fair cheeks.
"Carmilla... is dead," she said softly, her voice filled with sorrow.
"..." Ian didn't know how to respond for a moment.
If the Black Jeanne earlier had become angry because of Carmilla's death;
Then at this moment, she was feeling sad and grieving for the death of this Servant.
Thinking this way, she probably already had this sentiment when she was encouraging Atalante just now.
Was this a genuine expression of emotion? Or purely emotional chaos?
Ian couldn't judge at all anymore.
But—
He only felt that this side of her reminded him of an old phantom.
Back then, his little sister was also crying like this, wasn't she?
Just at this moment, the Black Jeanne turned around, looked up at the man, her eyes already filled with tears.
"Hey!" she called out, her voice trembling slightly.
"Why can't I see things clearly?!" she asked, her golden eyes looking at him with confusion.
"..." Hearing this, Ian reached out and gently wiped away the tears on the Black Jeanne's face, saying softly.
"Because you're crying," Ian explained gently, his thumb brushing against her cheek.
"I'm not crying!" the Black Jeanne argued stubbornly. "How could I possibly cry?!" she exclaimed, her voice filled with denial.
"I am the Dragon Witch!" she declared, her golden eyes looking at him fiercely.
"I absolutely won't cry?! Don't talk nonsense!" she insisted, her voice trembling.
"..." Ian sighed softly.
"Alright, alright, you said you didn't cry, then you didn't cry," Ian conceded gently, a soft smile on his lips.
"That's more like it..." The Black Jeanne sniffled, then stared at Ian, a few indescribable emotions appearing in her eyes.
She didn't know what those emotions were, but she knew what she should do.
The girl tiptoed and leaned towards the man's lips little by little.
The sun rose in the southeast.
The warm sunlight shone on the two of them, silently adding an edge to this emotion-healing kiss.
But at the same time—
A figure appeared in the distance outside the city.
It was Jeanne, holding a white holy banner.
At this moment, she saw the kiss bathed in the sunrise, and her eyes began to lose focus.
"Bro... brother?" Jeanne whispered, her blue eyes wide with shock.