—France is now nearly entirely fallen.
That was what the soldiers had said.
According to original history, in the year 1431, King Charles VII of France should have already signed a ceasefire agreement with Philippe III, who sided with England. Though tensions couldn't be completely erased, large-scale battles would certainly not occur for the time being.
But in reality…
"Charles VII is already dead."
Mash's voice sounded heavy.
Charles VII, who was supposed to sign a peace treaty with the English side, had died some time ago in this Singularity's timeline. This was now a fact known throughout all of France. And the perpetrator behind this unthinkable act was someone the French people never would have suspected.
"The Witch Jeanne."
Jeanne, who should have been executed by public burning, had now returned to the world as a witch. And just as she had been executed, she burned Charles VII alive in flames until he perished.
Afterward, the Witch Jeanne made Paris her stronghold and launched war across all of France. In just a few days, France—having just achieved peace and entered a period of calm—plunged once again into the flames of war.
The outcome of the war was also overwhelmingly one-sided. Since the war began until now, in only a few days, nearly all of France had fallen. Aside from a few major cities still resisting, there was no safe place left in the nation. Even the English army had already fled back to their homeland.
Honestly, this was shocking news—at least to Ritsuka and their companions. Though Ritsuka wasn't very knowledgeable about French history, they had heard of Saintess Jeanne.
Originally, she was just an ordinary village girl who, at age seventeen, received a divine revelation. She left her hometown to join the army. Until her capture in a minor conflict at Compiègne at age nineteen, she led the French army to unprecedented victories. Ultimately, she enabled Charles VII, the rightful heir, to be crowned, laying the foundation for France's eventual triumph.
In future history, Jeanne was recorded as France's national hero, a Catholic saint, the world's most famous holy maiden, and a globally recognized historical figure.
Yet someone like her was now slandered as a witch in this era.
[It's not an incomprehensible situation, Fujimaru.]
Roman's voice came through the communication device.
[In ancient times, boosting one's own troops' morale or demoralizing the enemy by slandering their leader was a common tactic. In modern society, it's akin to making false accusations to deliberately tarnish someone's reputation. And the primary source of the slander against Jeanne was England. As the opposing nation, it was only natural for them to defame Jeanne, who continuously thwarted their strategies.]
[But compared to what's recorded in history, what interests me more is the resurrection of the Witch Jeanne—I believe this is the root cause of this Singularity's formation.]
The dead cannot return to life. This was a universally accepted fact since the Age of Gods ended. In the Age of Gods, when someone died, their soul went to the underworld, which could still be accessed—because the underworld literally existed beneath the earth.
But in the year 1431, the Age of Gods had ended thousands of years ago. Even with Magic or Magecraft, the dead could not be revived. Jeanne was no exception. When you think about it, Jeanne's resurrection was the greatest anomaly of this Singularity.
"So we just need to send the Witch Jeanne back to her coffin, right?"
Hinako, never one for subtlety, spoke bluntly: "Then don't waste time here. Head straight to their base in Paris and destroy them all."
"Destroy… you mean attack the enemy's headquarters directly?"
"Yes. More specifically, I'll go to Paris alone and self-destruct several times. I think the Singularity will end right then."
Ritsuka: "..."
Mash: "..."
Chaldea: [...]
It could be said this was a strategy only Hinako could suggest or even consider—brutally direct and logically unassailable. After all, her self-destruction did possess that kind of power. If one explosion wasn't enough, she could just do it multiple times.
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
Back in Chaldea, Roman—unsure how to argue—turned to Naoki, who was calmly watching the scene unfold. "Natsukawa, Akuta wants to go to Paris and become a suicide bomber. What do you think?"
"Let her go," Naoki said casually, sipping his cola. "Senior Hinako can do it, can't she?"
[Hear that? Natsukawa says it's fine, so I'm leaving now!]
"No no no no no! Akuta, wait a moment! That's too reckless! No one just charges straight into the enemy's headquarters like that! And Natsukawa, act seriously! Even though you'll clean up after her, you can't just be this relaxed!"
Roman quickly stopped Hinako, who was preparing to go alone and behead the Witch Jeanne.
"Besides, didn't the soldiers mention it too? The enemies in this Singularity aren't just the resurrected Witch Jeanne—but also dragons!"
Dragons.
That was indeed something the soldiers had mentioned.
The reason the Witch Jeanne could seize nearly all of France in such a short time was her invincible army—the countless Wyverns that formed her dragon forces.
"No matter how many times you self-destruct, you'll definitely be hindered and disrupted by countless Phantasmal Species. This isn't an enemy you can defeat with self-destruction alone."
"Then I'll self-destruct more times," Hinako said firmly. "Besides, from the description, the creatures attacking cities are just low-tier Wyverns. Their accumulated lifespans are at most a few hundred years. They're no match for me at all."
If Mana stems from accumulated knowledge, then the power of Phantasmal Species comes from the accumulation of long life. Because their histories are so ancient, Phantasmal Species generally possess immense Mana, and their very existence is shrouded in mystery.
Phantasmal Species with lifespans exceeding a hundred years cannot be defeated by humans. Those over a thousand years old cannot even be handled by Magicians—their mere mystery is akin to Magic itself. The clearest example is Beo, Touko's golden wolf familiar.
And dragonkind stands at the peak of Phantasmal Species. Even low-tier Wyverns possess histories spanning at least a hundred years. In the modern age, they were beings capable of erasing the Clock Tower—unless faced by a Jewel Mage.
Unfortunately for them, Hinako was a fairy who had existed since ancient times. Her accumulated history stretched back to the Age of the Chinese Gods. Fighting Wyverns and their ilk was mere destruction to her.
Seeing he couldn't persuade Hinako, and with Naoki beside him looking like he was watching a show, Roman gritted his teeth and immediately pulled out his phone.
"Magical Merry! Emergency! There's a crazy bomber here who can't resist destroying the enemy base! How do I stop her?!"
[Just let her go. She can revive anyway, right? Besides, it's great stress relief. I recommend Roman try it too~]