Artoria believed Jeanne Alter deserved salvation.
Undoubtedly, this stemmed from her "heart of glory" Stirring once again.
As a knight of noble spirit, she couldn't bear to see a hero fall into villainy... especially after learning of Jeanne's deeds and how she was betrayed by despicable traitors.
"If even the justice of the world cannot right her wrongs, her vengeance becomes noble."
That was Artoria's judgment of Jeanne Alter's actions.
Even though Alaric had told her this Jeanne was a counterfeit, a distortion of the holy saint created by a magus's wish... did that matter?
"It's not about what she thinks."
"It's about how the world sees her."
Artoria's voice grew stern.
Burning a hero who saved a nation alive as a heretic... honestly, Artoria wanted to crack open the current English king's skull to see what it was made of.
Did he think such actions would boost his side's morale and weaken the enemy's resolve?
What a joke!
"Whether she's the true saint or not."
"After being betrayed and burned alive at the stake by her enemies."
"This era, and everyone in it... English or French alike... "
"They've all been nailed to the pillar of history's shame!"
…
Artoria and Alaric left the town called Orléans.
Jeanne Alter had assigned each heroic spirit a task, giving each a city to destroy, aiming to swiftly ruin the nation.
Artoria and Alaric were assigned Lyon... an ancient city, settled since the 6th century BC, with a peak population once exceeding two hundred thousand.
"So, what's your plan for the civilians?"
"I haven't decided yet…"
Alaric and Artoria traveled to the bustling city on foot, deliberately delaying.
Interestingly, they weren't the only ones with this idea.
"Hey, you're a Saber, right?"
"You don't seem… affected by this madness?"
A clear, spirited voice called from behind.
It was a purple-haired woman wielding a cross-shaped staff, dressed in a white monk's robe.
Black wisps of madness faintly roiled around her, yet her eyes were strikingly clear, showing no signs of Mad Enhancement's influence.
"I wouldn't say unaffected… It does have some effect, but I've suppressed it."
"Oh, apologies! My name is Martha, summoned as a Rider in this world."
"I'm glad to see you both aren't swayed by that madness either."
…
Iron-Fisted Saint Martha.
A companion of the Messiah, she once hosted the Savior with her siblings and found faith through His guidance.
After the Messiah's ascension, she never abandoned her faith. She wandered to Europe, taming a dragon named Tarascue in a southern French town.
Legend has it, she subdued the dragon by reciting the Lord's teachings while pummeling it with her fists... whether it was the teachings or her punches that tamed the beast, no one knows, but the six-legged, turtle-like dragon became her mount.
This was why she was summoned as a Rider.
"Is this your dragon?"
"So cute!"
Martha looked at the white dragon beside Artoria... now only three or four meters long, its large white head particularly striking.
The dragon was the main reason Martha noticed Artoria.
As fellow dragon tamers, it was only natural they'd be drawn to each other.
After closer inspection, realizing this fully armored heroic spirit was unaffected by the madness, Martha grew even more excited.
"As expected of a dragon-taming heroic spirit, you're different!"
"So, what do you think of that girl?"
"Losing her sanity to righteous vengeance, needing salvation to prove divine love? Exactly, that's it!"
On the matter of Jeanne Alter, Martha quickly found common ground with Artoria.
In fact, Martha's compassion for the fallen saint surpassed even Artoria's.
"If He were here, He'd surely reach out, anointing her head with oil."
"She's a most worthy child, never abandoning her faith even when burned alive… Never mind, let's not dwell on that. Let's figure out how to save her and deal with the tasks she's given us."
Martha's face showed distress.
Clearly, she faced the same dilemma as Artoria... neither saint nor knight could harm innocents or bring calamity to the world.
"If only someone could stop us."
Martha said suddenly.
Could someone stop them? Perhaps.
From Martha's understanding of the Holy Grail, when a world-ending disaster arose, the Grail would summon corresponding miracles... heroic spirits to counter them and save the era.
But… was it reliable to pin hopes on unknown heroic spirits?
"Wait, stop us?"
"Hm… I just thought of something."
Artoria pondered for a moment.
Then, the idea-machine from Britannia lit up, her eyes gleaming.
"Do you know who I am?"
She turned to Martha, asking abruptly.
"No idea."
Martha shook her head, puzzled, staring at the fully armored heroic spirit.
And that was exactly the effect Artoria wanted.
"You don't know?"
Perfect!
No one knew who was inside this armor.
Which meant she could be… anyone!
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