After all the dust had settled, Jalter and the others left the pocket dimension, returning to the Occult Research Club's activity room.
As soon as they stepped out, they saw Azazel leisurely sipping black tea on the sofa, utterly unconcerned.
With Jalter and Ophis around, there was absolutely no risk to their lives, so there was no need to worry—this was Azazel's excuse. But since he was a bit too slow in offering it, he ended up taking a punch from Jalter anyway.
Now, Azazel sat listening, holding a damp towel against his rapidly darkening eye, as Rias recounted what had happened within the separate dimension.
When he heard that the Khaos Brigade had collaborated with the Grim Reapers and even unleashed Samael, the [Dragon Eater], Azazel's relaxed expression instantly vanished. Quickly piecing everything together, his face flushed red with anger.
"Damn that bastard Hades! Is he really that dissatisfied with Zeus agreeing to cooperate with the various factions?!"
The Greek Underworld, Fallen Angels, and Devils all occupied the same Underworld realm. As neighbors, their relationships had always been dreadful, having fought countless large and small wars. Recently, the Fallen Angels, Devils, and Angels had finally signed a peace treaty, but the Greek Underworld continued harboring resentment toward the Fallen Angels and Devils.
Furthermore, the myths of this world were vastly different from those familiar to Jalter. In the Greek mythology she knew, Zeus was infamous as a womanizer, while Hades was morally the most upright among the three brothers. Yet in this world, Zeus was a responsible and peace-loving king who strongly supported Azazel and Sirzechs's ideals of peace. Meanwhile, Hades was an intensely jealous deity, resentful of Zeus's higher status, and openly contemptuous toward Devils and Fallen Angels.
"So that's it—they were after Ophis. They wanted Ophis's power... but since Ophis is still here, their plan with Hades ultimately failed, huh? Ha! Serves them right!"
Just as Hades looked down on Fallen Angels, Azazel also held a strong dislike for Hades. Seeing Hades suffer such a setback now was as refreshing as drinking ice-cold soda on a scorching summer day.
Rias continued her story, moving on to how Jalter, protecting Ophis, had gotten ensnared by Samael's tongue. Even though Jalter and Ophis now stood safe and sound in front of him, Azazel instinctively broke into a nervous sweat upon hearing this.
Then came the moment when Jalter revealed her true origins...
After hearing the full story, Azazel looked as if he'd just seen a ghost.
He didn't interrupt even once, instead quietly absorbing everything, and afterwards fell into a long, stunned silence.
"A life created by the Holy Grail...? An Avenger born from Jeanne d'Arc's memories and Marshal Gilles de Rais's hatred?"
Even for Azazel, who had experienced the Great War and lived for countless years, this shocking information was enough to leave his mind spinning, his face frozen stiff from sheer bewilderment.
"I can't believe Jeanne-san has been lying to us all this time. She isn't even the real Jeanne d'Arc..." Rias complained bitterly, still upset with Jalter even now. "Azazel, tell me, isn't that way too much?"
"Ah, about that—I've known for a long time that Miss Witch wasn't the real Jeanne," Azazel replied with a shrug, speaking in a deadpan voice.
"Eh?"
"Not just me. Your brother Sirzechs knew too, and as for Michael—well, naturally he knew, since the reincarnation of Jeanne d'Arc was something arranged by his side to begin with."
"What!? Even my brother knew...?"
Rias covered her mouth in shock, and even Jalter herself couldn't keep calm after hearing that.
"Hold on! You're saying that the leaders of all three factions knew from the start that I'm not the real Jeanne d'Arc?!"
Azazel nodded nonchalantly, replying, "Exactly. It's precisely because I knew the truth from the start that I never once called you 'Jeanne-san,' but kept calling you 'Miss Witch' instead."
"But... Sirzechs-sama and Michael-sama have always called her 'Jeanne'..." Akeno Himejima furrowed her brows, pointing out the inconsistency.
Azazel gave an explanatory shrug. "They never shared their thoughts with me, but maybe they're simply gentle enough to overlook it. Even though they saw through your disguise, they chose not to expose it out of respect, or perhaps they simply believed Miss Witch was worthy of bearing that name."
Hearing such words, Jalter's face gradually turned red... out of sheer embarrassment.
And here I thought I'd done a great job hiding it, but turns out I've been exposed from the start...?
"Even though I always suspected Miss Witch wasn't the real Jeanne, I never imagined you were actually this kind of existence. Honestly, it's so absurd I have to wonder if there's something fundamentally wrong with this world." Azazel picked up the coffee cup on the table, drinking a sip in an attempt to calm his restless heart.
"Azazel, do you think what Jeanne-san told us just now is true?" Rias asked earnestly. "You've been researching [Sacred Gears] all this time. Do you think the Longinus, [Sephiroth Graal], could really have that kind of power?"
Creating life... there were indeed multiple ways to achieve something like that. Many gods across different mythologies possessed such abilities. However, what drew Rias's attention the most were Jalter's two extraordinary abilities—the power to command dragons and the near-infinite magical energy.
If Jeanne-san was telling the truth, wouldn't that mean obtaining the [Sephiroth Graal] could grant others these abilities as well?
Clearly, Azazel had been thinking along the same lines. His prolonged silence had precisely been due to considering these possibilities.
After a lengthy pause, Azazel let out a long, weary sigh, echoing softly within the activity room.
"It's true that I've spent a long time researching the [Sacred Gears] left behind by the Biblical God. Now that he's dead, there's probably no one else in the world who understands [Sacred Gears] better than me—but even so, they still hold too many unknown secrets beyond my comprehension... The Biblical God truly was a terrifying existence."
"Still, if Miss Witch's words are true, that proves several things… For instance, the [Sephiroth Graal], while possessing the terrifying ability to alter the principles of life itself, also corrupts the mind of its wielder, forcing them to see things they were never meant to see. That aligns quite closely with the circumstances of Marshal Gilles de Rais. After Jeanne d'Arc's death, his sanity gradually deteriorated, leading him into obsessive studies of dark sorcery. He abducted and slaughtered children in his territories, forsaking his original faith to offer sacrifices to nonexistent evil gods. The fairytale of Bluebeard was created precisely from his tragic tale… I suppose his mental breakdown was caused by the [Sephiroth Graal]."
Corruption of the mind, murdering innocent children—even devils who heard such a story would find it disturbing, despite having no personal ties to Gilles de Rais.
The former Marshal of France, a man who once basked in glory and honor, ended his days in disgrace, reviled as an unforgivable heretic and criminal.
After learning that Gilles de Rais had become like this due to the [Sephiroth Graal], Rias and the others couldn't help but feel a pang of sorrow for him.
They then cautiously turned their gazes toward Jalter… uncertain what reaction she might show upon hearing all this.
Would she feel hurt? Would she be angry? Would she pity him?
Of course not.
Back in Chaldea, five Jeannes wandered around every single day. Gilles even constantly mistook Artoria for Jeanne as well, meaning in his eyes there weren't merely five Jeannes but even more. With circumstances like that, he had probably been ecstatic every single day. How could Jalter possibly feel sad for someone like him?
But she couldn't say that, so instead…
"Why should I feel sad? Gilles died smiling in the end, after all."
With an intentionally disgusted expression, Jalter explained with feigned nostalgia to the curious and confused crowd, "At the time, Gilles was on the verge of committing an irredeemable sin. Someone stopped him just before he crossed the line—and that someone happened to be that meddling Saintess herself."
"The Saintess… You mean Jeanne d'Arc?!"
"But… didn't Jeanne-sama already pass away?"
Their reactions were exactly what Jalter had anticipated. She nodded blandly and continued:
"She was already dead, yes, so only her soul appeared… Should I call her a selfless saintess after all? Even in that frail state, she still worried about humanity—I was almost moved to tears. Heh."
Whenever the topic involved Jeanne d'Arc, Jalter's tone and expression inevitably grew bitter and malicious, frequently accompanied by a mocking sneer that could frighten children into tears.
"Even though he had to oppose the saintess he adored, Gilles must have felt joy at the very end. Being able to meet her again before his death, receiving guidance from her—at the very least, he departed with a smile. That ending wasn't so terrible for him."
"Was… was that truly how it happened?" Asia's voice held evident relief. "That's good, then…"
Even knowing that Gilles de Rais had killed countless innocent children, committed so many sins, Asia still worried about him.
Given the severity of his crimes, Gilles de Rais absolutely deserved to die. It was only right that he atoned for his sins. But at least, in his final moments, he had met that saintess again. Surely, at that moment, the once-glorious Marshal must have found redemption.
In truth, Asia deeply understood Gilles de Rais. Gilles had regarded Jeanne d'Arc as his greatest faith and sole reason for living, just as Asia herself now considered Jalter her greatest faith. If one day Jalter died as Jeanne d'Arc had, Asia couldn't even imagine what would become of her.
"Tch! Gilles conveniently died and left me behind to suffer," Jalter complained irritably, arms crossed over her chest. "'She's my mistake, the only one I'm truly worried about. When I'm gone, Jeanne, please become her support in my stead, look after her well…' Utterly ridiculous."
This was part of the narrative Jalter had deliberately crafted. Given her usual hostility toward Jeanne d'Arc, it would be difficult to explain her attitude if she claimed never to have met the real saintess in person.
Her words sent another ripple of shock through the group.
"Eh? Ehh!? Ehhhhhh!" Xenovia's voice trembled in astonishment. "Th-th-th-that means Jeanne-sama… not only did you meet the real Jeanne d'Arc-sama, but she also entrusted someone to your care?!"
"Ah… No wonder your reactions were always strangely intense whenever Jeanne d'Arc was mentioned," Azazel stroked his chin knowingly. "Seems like you two didn't get along very well."
"Because she was an infuriating woman! The way she looked at me always made my blood boil. How could someone like her gain the admiration of so many people and become a saintess? It makes me wonder if everyone had gone blind. Even a country-girl gorilla could become a saintess, huh?" Recalling unpleasant memories, Jalter's expression soured even further.
Her constant belittlement of Jeanne d'Arc was hardly new to anyone present.
But now, having learned the "truth," they could only smile helplessly at her… realizing that Jalter's harsh words were merely her unique way of showing concern.
After all, Jalter was just a textbook tsundere. (Laugh)
With the topic of Jalter's past fully explored, Azazel didn't forget that Rias had yet to finish recounting their experiences. Following the revelations about Jalter's origins was the appearance of the [Sword of Salvation].
Just like Xenovia, Azazel had viewed the [Sword of Salvation] as something left behind specifically for Jalter by the Biblical God. But unlike Xenovia, Azazel had held suspicions for a very long time that Jalter was intentionally created as a hidden trump card by the Biblical God, meant to confront a crisis so severe that even the God of the Bible had failed to fully resolve it.
The appearance of the [Sword of Salvation] only reinforced Azazel's belief.
A witch born by accident, possessing dragon-affinity so overwhelming it could even affect Ophis, the Infinite Dragon God herself, and an absurd magical power surpassing most of the world's top ten strongest beings. Her personality was refined by Jeanne d'Arc, leading the Biblical God to acknowledge her, bestowing upon her the blade bearing the name of salvation and endless divine armaments…
Azazel fell into deep contemplation, reorganizing and hypothesizing based on this newly obtained information.
Then, suddenly, a new thought emerged—
Wait… was it really an accident? The Longinus [Sephiroth Graal], Jeanne d'Arc's soul prior to reincarnation, the pre-prepared divine armaments and [Sword of Salvation]… If these weren't accidental at all, but deliberately arranged by someone…
His pupils contracted sharply, and Azazel involuntarily held his breath. This conjecture was bold, far too daring. Yet, the deeper he pondered, the more undeniable the truth appeared to become.
Biblical God… was all of this truly part of your grand plan? Just what exactly did those eyes of yours see? Why did you refuse to tell us anything...?