— — — — — —
Notification chimes rang out one after another, clanking nonstop, but Tom didn't even bother looking. He was still stuck in a state of disbelief.
After talking with Nicolas earlier that day, he'd gained a whole new understanding of just how stubborn Jeanne was. Combine that with her lack of education and worldly experience, and he'd decided to take a different approach, using "the Lord" to shove her into the right mindset as fast as possible.
But this… this worked a little too well.
Her approval maxed out instantly?
Tom met Jeanne's blazing gaze and, for once, felt a flicker of guilt.
Scamming a fool… that wasn't illegal, right?
No wait... if anyone was going to mislead this girl, better it be him. That's right, he was doing a good deed.
"Please rest assured, Son of God," Jeanne said, leaping to her feet. Her young, clear voice was filled with unwavering resolve, like she was swearing an oath. "I will organize my abilities as quickly as possible and dedicate everything to you."
"Very good. Excellent attitude," Tom said, giving her a thumbs-up. "That said, when you say 'everything,' we'll put a pin in that until we're both adults. For now, focus on studying and learning to read properly before we talk about anything else."
Jeanne's face turned pink, and she nodded shyly.
Tom called Ariana over and put her in charge of teaching Jeanne the most basic life skills and general knowledge. The girl puffed out her chest and agreed immediately, then ran over and made Jeanne call her "teacher."
When Jeanne obediently addressed her as "Teacher Ariana," Ariana beamed so hard her eyes curved into crescents.
It didn't matter who she was teaching or what subject it was. After waiting so long, she'd finally become a real teacher at last.
Only after watching Jeanne and Ariana leave hand in hand did Tom finally have the time to check the three gifts he'd just received.
They'd come way too easily, but there was no way her talents were cheap.
Otherwise, how could an illiterate sixteen-year-old become a King of the Century?
[Faith Support: Jeanne d'Arc possesses an innate will as firm as steel. No external factor can shake her resolve. Increases spell success rate and enhances spell power. (Reward at 25 Approval)]
[Voice of Revelation: Through years of listening to sermons and studying religious texts, Jeanne came to regard her powerful intuition as "the Lord's guidance." Amplified by Faith Support, this intuition evolves further, allowing near-precognitive predictions of enemy actions in combat and the ability to discern the good or ill intent of others. (Reward at 50 Approval)]
[Divine Grace's Proxy (Crimson Saint): Having embodied her faith with life and soul, she is reborn through flames. At the moment her existence finally ends, her magic, spirit, and very being are imprinted in the world, triggering unpredictable rule changes. Her magic transcends and ascends, and the fire that consumes her life transforms into scarlet lotus karmic flames that judge all things. (Max Approval Reward)]
Tom read through the detailed descriptions, then thought for a moment before claiming the first two abilities in order.
After taking Faith Support, he didn't feel much at first. But when he cast a spell experimentally, the change was immediate.
Meanwhile, the intuition granted by Voice of Revelation only activated under certain conditions. As for "discerning good and evil," it wasn't some absolute moral judgment, but a sense of whether someone held goodwill or malice toward the user.
As for Divine Grace's Proxy, Tom decided to leave that one unclaimed for now. It sounded a bit too mystical. He had no idea how long it would take to fully digest a talent like that, or whether it would cause a massive disturbance. Better to save it for nighttime.
Tom hopped off the bed, rushed into the bathroom to brush his teeth and wash his face, then hurried to the Great Hall for breakfast.
"You seem really happy today," Hermione said, noticing the difference right away. There was a faint smile on his face that just wouldn't go away.
"Of course I am. Seeing you does that to me."
That single offhand line made Hermione lower her head shyly. Normally, this level of flirtation was nothing new between them. But for some reason, Tom sounded especially sincere today, enough that she truly believed he was happy because of her.
Tom noticed her reaction too. Under normal circumstances, Hermione would've rolled her eyes or pretended to pinch him. She wouldn't be this flustered.
He quickly realized this was another effect of Faith Support. Not only did he believe his own words more strongly, others did too.
No wonder a simple girl had been able to lead nobles, knights, and hardened soldiers into battle after her.
Tom fell into thought, but Daphne pouted. "So, Tom, does that mean you only wanted to see Hermione today? In that case, I'll just leave."
"Of course not," Tom said, snapping out of it. He quickly grabbed the young lady's hand and soothed her. "I get to see you every day, so I'm happy every day. That goes without saying, doesn't it?"
The little witch immediately lit up with a bright smile. With or without the Faith Support talent, Daphne would have believed him anyway.
It wasn't until Professor McGonagall appeared in the classroom that she reluctantly let go of his hand and started behaving herself.
If it had been any other teacher, the two of them probably would have kept clinging to each other.
...
While Tom was attending class outside, Ariana was also teaching Jeanne inside the study space.
At this point, Ariana's expression had started to look a little… off.
"Jeanne, they're just a few English letters," she said weakly. "What's so hard about them?"
Modern English had evolved from French and Germanic languages, with some higher-level vocabulary coming from Latin, the ancestor of most continental tongues. Compared to French, English was already heavily simplified and much easier to learn.
Inside the study space, communication worked seamlessly thanks to its special properties. But once Jeanne was revived in the real world, she would have to rely on her own language skills. That was why Ariana was teaching her English.
And yet, after half a day, Jeanne still couldn't recognize even ten out of the twenty-six letters.
Jeanne's eyes had already turned into dizzy spirals. These bizarre squiggles felt a hundred times harder to understand than military maps ever had.
"Teacher," she said hesitantly, "I… I try really hard to remember the letters. But whenever you teach me new ones, I mix them up with the old ones."
Ariana froze.
Had she been too careless taking on the job of teaching Jeanne how to read?
NO.
Clinging to the belief that she couldn't give up so easily, Ariana forced herself to hold on until noon. Finally, completely defeated, she went to Ravenclaw for help.
After hearing Ariana's description, Ravenclaw, who was enjoying a rare moment of leisure, gave a gentle smile.
"Learning to read isn't that complicated," she said calmly. "Your method must be the problem."
"Sis Rowena, I really can't do this," Ariana pleaded, shaking Ravenclaw's arm. "Jeanne is clearly trying her best, but nothing sticks. Please help me."
"All right, I understand," Ravenclaw said, stretching lazily. Her silky robes couldn't hide her perfect figure, only outlining it even more attractively.
She stood up, and a looser set of everyday clothes flew over from a nearby rack and draped themselves over her.
"Let's go. I'll take a look."
Ariana was overjoyed and immediately volunteered to lead the way, dragging Ravenclaw off to go "settle accounts" with Jeanne.
...
When Tom came by that evening, none of the three women were free.
He found it a little strange, but didn't think much of it.
Ever since Ariana had emerged from the shadows of her childhood trauma, she'd gradually regained her lively, sharp-witted nature. She learned things quickly. As for Ravenclaw, there was no need to say more. She was the smartest witch in history.
There was no way those two couldn't handle one little girl.
Impossible. Absolutely impossible.
...
Next, Tom called Andros over to serve as his test subject.
When Andros learned that Jeanne's approval had already reached a perfect score, he stood there stunned for a long while, amazed at how absurdly fast it had happened.
"Whatever happens in a moment, don't be shocked," Tom warned him.
Divine Grace's Proxy: Crimson Saint.
Setting aside what the talent actually did, just the words "Crimson Saint" were enough to make Tom uneasy.
Unfortunately, his time-based abilities couldn't show him what would happen after claiming it. After hesitating all day, he decided to activate the talent inside the study space. If it really did cause some kind of transformation, he would just use his authority over the space to seal the talent completely and pretend it had never existed.
Andros was a little confused by all this, but he still nodded seriously.
Only then did Tom finally feel at ease and claim the talent.
In the next instant, eerie flames engulfed his entire body. The fire felt like it came straight from hell, filled with piercing screams and furious roars, yet it also carried an unsettling trace of divine power.
For a moment, even Andros couldn't tell what kind of energy this fire belonged to.
Tom, wrapped in the flames, was completely unharmed. The fire slowly but relentlessly seeped into his body, and at the same time, his magic began to undergo a transformation.
This kind of change felt familiar to him, very similar to when he'd consumed the golden apple. The difference was that the apple's divine power was an active trait. He had to trigger it deliberately to fuse the apple's energy with his magic and reach a higher level.
This time, the transformation directly elevated the essence of his magic itself, just on a smaller scale.
.
.
.