A white void. Esdeath found herself standing in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by an endless, silent white. She didn't feel panic or surprise, not even a little. She was familiar with this place.
But unlike the last time, when she had been in her male form as Fable and Esdeath had been laying unconscious beside her, this time she was the only one standing. From now on, Fable and Esdeath were just one person.
In truth, Esdeath had used her last 100,000 SP points on purpose. Most of her skills weren't working in heaven because of the very low connection with her Star Constellation.
That's why she used the points to remove the restriction that forced her to follow the plotline. She had expected that if it worked, it would create a strong, direct connection between her and her Star Constellation. And it had happened just as she planned. Of course, if it hadn't worked, Jesus was there as her backup plan.
She looked at her front. Her Star Constellation was sitting there, a harp resting in her lap, her eyes closed in perfect calm.
"Sit," she said softly, her voice echoing in the quiet void.
A chair immediately conjured itself out of nowhere. Esdeath sat down quietly, a frown etched on her face. Even though she knew her constellation wouldn't harm her, she was always ready for the unexpected.
"It seems it is time I should tell you about everything!" the constellation said, her voice still calm.
Esdeath narrowed her eyes, her gaze sharp and demanding. "You better do!" she replied, her tone leaving no room for argument.
"You have already heard my name. I am Jeanne D'Arc!" she announced.
"Jeanne D'Arc, the youngest daughter of the Demon King," Esdeath thought to herself, realizing she had been half right. "I knew it was one of the Demon King's daughters, but I'm a little surprised that it's the youngest." Although she had expected her constellation to be one of Jeanne D'Arc's descendants, she never imagined it was Jeanne herself.
All the daughters of the Demon King were called the Witches, and Jeanne D'Arc was known as the Combat Witch. Yet, she never really got a chance to show her powers and might anywhere.
But she was actually the most popular among her siblings. Not for any positive reason, but because the story of how Jeanne D'Arc was burned alive was a famous story, greatly popular among all humans. It was even a bedtime story for kids. Yet somehow, this Jeanne D'Arc was still alive.
"I expected that much," Esdeath said aloud. "But I have other questions. Why did you choose me? And what is actually your goal?"
Jeanne faintly smiled, a sad, distant look in her eyes as she looked back. "It seems I need to tell you everything from the beginning!" she said. As she spoke, the white void around them started to fill with colors, swirling and taking shape, like a movie screen in a grand theater just before the film begins.
----
Outside, the sun had already risen. It was only about 8 AM, but the protests were still raging, the chaos refusing to back down at all. In fact, it felt like it had only erupted even more. Many people were fighting with local guards, their faces twisted with anger as they destroyed public property. The crowd was turning on itself, with internal quarrels breaking out everywhere.
Inside a dimly lit bar, a secret gathering place for the revolutionary group, the three squadron leaders were having a serious meeting. The air was thick with the smell of stale ale and desperate ambition.
"Other than Lady Maruti being captured, everything else is going according to the plan," Ducton said, his voice low and solemn.
"Yes," Cleric agreed, leaning forward, his eyes gleaming with excitement. "The protests and public outrage are at their peak. This is the time we should spark a civil war and take over the kingdom!"
Vesilisa also gripped her spear and stood up, her energy crackling around her. "Yes! We three will take over from three corners of the kingdom and lead our forces towards the capital city, Celsius. We'll win over half of the kingdom!" she declared, her voice filled with fiery passion.
"But what about the other half?" Cleric asked, his brow furrowed. "The main branch of the Awakened Academy will also be in that other half. It's not any less valuable!"
"Taking over an entire kingdom in one night is not something we can handle," Ducton added, his tone grounding their excitement. "And besides, having the capital is the same as having the kingdom. We can focus on stabilizing the land we conquer instead. As for the rest, we'll take it over time!"
"Right," Vesilisa added with a satisfied smile. "And we can't forget that we need to rescue Lady Maruti, too. She'll be the face of our new Republic Empire!"
***
In the royal palace, everyone had already woken up, but it felt more like they had barely slept at all. The heavy weight of the coming day pressed down on them. The first thing Ethan did was check if everything was fine. He met with Cassandra and the others, talked to the guards to make sure Lortell hadn't done anything funny, and even went himself to see Maruti in person.
"Bleurh... What I saw in the morning!" Maruti immediately made a disgusted, vomiting-like expression to mock Ethan the moment she saw him.
Ethan only narrowed his eyes, and went back without saying a word.
After returning to his guest room, he started pacing back and forth, his restless steps wearing a path in the expensive rug. He was waiting for the moment the trial would start.
Thankfully, it didn't take long. As Queen Maddie had promised, she resumed the trial in the morning at 10 AM. One by one, everyone started coming into the trial room.
On the higher ground, at the front, sat all the powerful leaders, including Maddie, with Victoria von Scarlet standing stoically behind her. King Augustus was also there, looking like the weakest among them.
Maddie herself was an S rank. The Dwarf King, while not an S rank, was at Rank A level, and if he were ever in danger, the Dwarf Kingdom had an S rank ready to help him. Igret herself was an S rank. And as for Mohammad Abdul, he was a Rank A awakened, but it was whispered that he had an S rank awakened who always accompanied him from the shadows.
All of them sat like royalty, their expressions calm as they looked down at the audience.
One by one, people came in. Most of them were the same people as yesterday: Princess Ingrassia, her siblings, Lortell's mother and her siblings, and other nobles. Ethan was also there, standing in a corner against the wall, trying to act like just another guard. He stared at the nothingness in front of him, his eyes lost and empty.
But then, Sylvania noticed him. She walked over and gently shook his arm. "Are you feeling well?" she asked.
Ethan was quiet for a long moment, his gaze dropping to his open palm. He stared at it as if the lines there held some terrible secret, his expression a tangled mess of confusion and sorrow.
"I... I feel empty," he said finally, his voice heavy and solemn.
"Empty?" Sylvania repeated, her own voice filled with worry.
"Yes," Ethan sighed, the sound full of a deep weariness. "I think what we did yesterday wasn't the best option. It feels like we were too rushed, too bold." Although yesterday he had killed Esdeath and come back safely, in the process, so many people had died. Even two member of his team was gone. Not to mention, he had been so angry and rash for some reason. It didn't feel like his usual self at all.
"My goal was to save as many people as I could," he thought, the guilt a cold knot in his stomach.
"Yet even more people died instead. This wasn't like me. I should have focused on protecting, not attacking. I charged recklessly at Maruti, too, without listening to my mother at all. It was definitely a bad decision that could have ruined our whole plan!"He thought.
"It may be guilt," a calm voice came from behind them.
They both turned to see Cassandra walking towards them, a stack of files and documents held neatly in her arms.
"Maybe..." Ethan sighed again, deciding to accept Cassandra's words as the truth.
Lortell, Meldia the dark nun, and Verdes also joined them. Meldia and Verdes found seats on the audience's side, while Lortell walked with a determined stride towards the defendant's area.
Cassandra entered as well, her face a perfect mask of emotionless professionalism. At this point, everyone important, except for Esdeath, was present.
"You can begin!" Maddie said, her voice cutting through the quiet murmurs with undeniable authority.
"Where is Esdeath?" Lortell asked, her voice sharp and clear.
"There's no need for you to know that!" Cassandra added immediately, her tone just as firm.
"Why?" Lortell shot back, a deep frown forming on her face. "What if you are trying to torture or manipulate her? That would be clearly against the law!" The reason Lortell wasn't using force to see Esdeath was because she knew Cassandra respected the law. She believed Cassandra wouldn't go to extremes against a prisoner, even one like Esdeath.
But who could tell her that Cassandra had already broken that very law and killed Esdeath?
"Due to certain circumstances, Esdeath is greatly resisting," Cassandra spoke, her words measured and precise, like a seasoned lawyer. "We can't bring her here without causing security concerns for everyone present."
"What circumstances?" Lortell demanded, not letting it go.
"There's no need for you to know that," Cassandra said dismissively, her gaze sweeping over all the leaders, settling on Maddie. "Esdeath will come when it is her turn. First," she declared, her voice ringing with purpose, "I shall expose Lortell Mariette!"