"Jeanne?!"
When Aoko said that, Ritsuka and the others were instantly confused.
Wasn't Jeanne already executed by fire and reborn as Sorceress Jeanne? Why was Aoko saying they could meet Jeanne?
Seeing their bewilderment, Aoko said, "Well, she'll explain the details herself when you meet. Wait here a moment—I'll go call her from upstairs."
"No, no need. I've already come down."
Before Aoko could finish speaking or move, a soft female voice echoed from the staircase. Then, Ritsuka and the others saw a girl with golden braided hair descending from the second floor.
Once she reached them, the girl—Jeanne—offered a gentle smile. "I overheard your conversation from upstairs. I'm sorry—I've been constantly pursued by my other self ever since I appeared, and only after being rescued by Miss Aozaki last night was I finally able to rest. That's why I kept sleeping and couldn't meet you sooner."
"It's a pleasure to meet you all, guests from Chaldea. I am Jeanne, a Servant of the Ruler class. I have answered the world's call to appear and face the crisis of this Singularity. I look forward to working with you."
Her gaze swept quickly over Ritsuka, Mash, and Hinako, then settled on Naoki, who appeared as a 3D projection. Jeanne gave a small, knowing smile. "By the way, it's been a long time, Mr. Natsukawa. I never expected to see you again. How is Miss Gray doing?"
[Huh?]
"Huh?"
Both parties froze for a moment at Jeanne's sudden words.
Again?! Another one of Naoki's old acquaintances?!
(Chief! The number of women you know is seriously beyond normal!)
"Naoki..."
[Aoko, I know exactly why you're looking at me like that, but I'm just as surprised. I do know Jeanne—but from the Holy Grail War in a parallel world. I've never met this world's Jeanne before.]
Naoki was slightly bewildered himself.
Jeanne's class was Ruler—a class that retained memories of previous Holy Grail Wars each time they manifested. In a parallel world, Naoki wouldn't have been surprised if Jeanne said, "Long time no see."
But in this world, they'd never met. So why had she addressed him that way?
Seeing everyone's confusion, Jeanne explained calmly: "Mr. Natsukawa, I am indeed the Jeanne of this world, and this truly is our first meeting. As you suspect, I shouldn't know you. However, do you recall an incident several years ago involving parallel worlds, where the axis of the world you once visited briefly intersected with this one?"
[The Night of Wallachia in Misaki City?]
Jeanne nodded. "At that time, the Throne of Heroes from both worlds also made contact. And during that moment, I received the memories of the Holy Grail War from my counterpart in that parallel world."
[That explains it...]
Now Naoki understood. If that was the case, then from Jeanne's perspective, it had indeed been a long time since they last "met"—through the shared memories of her parallel self. Counting real-world time, the Holy Grail War in Trifas had occurred fourteen years ago. Though the Throne of Heroes existed beyond time and space, Heroic Spirits weren't entirely devoid of a sense of temporal passage.
For both of them, it was truly "long time no see."
Naoki gave a faint smile.
[Nice to meet you for the first time—and also, long time no see, Jeanne. Gray is doing well, though she's currently helping Touko and Da Vinci clean the workshop, so she couldn't make it. But after all these years, I'm sure the changes in Gray will surprise you greatly.]
"I can imagine. After all, back then, Miss Gray was only nine years old. Now, she must have grown so much. I'd love to see her again, if the chance arises."
[There will be plenty of chances. We can talk about that later. For now, let's focus on what matters—Jeanne, is there something you'd like to tell us?]
Jeanne nodded slightly. "Yes. But honestly, most of it doesn't need explaining. Since your goal is to fix the Singularity, our purposes align. There's no need to discuss cooperation—we're already on the same side."
"What I'd like to talk about is how to deal with my other self."
How to confront Sorceress Jeanne—this was indeed a critical issue. She was the primary cause of the anomaly in this Singularity. While defeating her might resolve the crisis, her true strength remained unknown. All Ritsuka and the others knew so far was that she commanded vast hordes of Wyverns and several Servants.
[Jeanne, do you know the details about Sorceress Jeanne's forces?]
"In a way, I was fortunate—I was summoned near their base. Although I was immediately chased, that also allowed me to observe their full combat strength."
"Besides the Wyvern hordes you already know about, there are actually seven Servants on their side. Unfortunately, my privilege as a Ruler seems to be malfunctioning somehow, so I can't identify their True Names. I apologize."
[Don't worry about that. I possess an ability similar to True Name Discernment. Aside from that, does Sorceress Jeanne have any other combat forces?]
"There is one more dragon." Jeanne said. "Not a Wyvern-type dragon, but a high-tier Phantasmal Species. According to my other self, its name is Fafnir."
"The evil dragon slain by the famous dragon-slaying hero, Siegfried."
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
At the same time, in the skies about thirty kilometers from Vaucouleurs.
A massive swarm of dark clouds—composed of countless Wyverns—raced swiftly toward Vaucouleurs. At the very front of this Wyvern horde soared a gigantic black dragon, far larger and far more savage in appearance than the Wyverns.
Standing atop the dragon's head, holding a banner made of dragon hide, Jeanne Alter gazed far into the distance at Vaucouleurs.
"I can feel it... this sensation. Yes, she's there. I'm there."
"You're truly fortunate, Jeanne." Gilles de Rais approached Jeanne Alter with a laugh. "Vaucouleurs—it's the fortress where that witch who drove us away resides. This way, not only can we eliminate that false version of you, but we can also finish off that meddling sorceress at the same time. Truly, one strike resolves two problems."
Jeanne Alter smiled coldly. "Ah~ You're right, Gilles. Whether it's that irritating witch or my naive other self, neither of you will escape this time."