Next, Shen Er, what's your business?

Chapter 576 Reunion with Gilles de Rais (two chapters in one)

Padden.

The scene after the switch is a materialized hell.The dark stone room was filled with stench.In the center is a luxurious big bed, and countless severed heads of children are arranged on the table next to it.And the ground is full of countless carcasses that originally belonged to them.While half is fresh, the other half has started to rot.But it's all the same to die bleeding and with a hopeless expression.

Joan clenched her fists.This kind of hell, Joan of Arc does not know.However, she is impressive in terms of knowledge.That is absolutely unavoidable when discussing oneself as a person.

"...This is Tiforth City, right?"

"That's right. It's the residence of that Hellboy—Gill de Rais."

Gilles de Rais.It was the entourage of Joan of Arc who stood up to save the motherland, and one of those who contributed to the liberation of Orléans.A great hero who made many contributions in the Hundred Years' War, and finally became a field marshal—and then.

At the same time, he was also a serial killer who indulged in teenage love and black magic in his own territory, tortured and tortured hundreds of teenagers, and tortured them to death.

Joan didn't know.She knows nothing but Jill, who is her guardian and fights alongside her on the battlefield.Of course, she is a Servant after all, and she still has some understanding of Gilles de Rais' brutal and violent behavior intellectually.

but--

"Knowledge and reality are two different things, right?"

Joan looked at the pile of corpses that used to be boys with a stiff expression.It was a truly eerie sight.It is quite common for corpses to be exposed in the wilderness on the battlefield.But these entities in front of Joan's eyes are all short in stature, with hands and feet as thin as dead branches-corpses that are rarely seen on the battlefield where adults fight each other.

Although it was a dizzying and blasphemous scene, it only slightly shook Joan's heart.The past is the past after all, and that is a fact that is absolutely not allowed to be overturned.

Their deaths, even if they are the sets of a stage play, must be remembered.

But at the same time, she has a negative attitude towards judging her life as a regret based on this alone.

Joan's will is firm, and her incorruptible heart will never be shaken.

"Even so, I will not waver."

"Probably. Even if you see the corpses of teenagers you don't know, at most you will only feel sympathy, and there is no weakness in it that can make your heart succumb."

With a creaking sound, the wooden door was opened.Joan of Arc, who looked back reflexively, suddenly revealed a look of astonishment.Thin cheeks, bright and maddened pupils, the bravery of the past has disappeared, replaced by an appearance full of despair and hatred.

That was not the Gilles de Rais familiar to Joan——

It was the fabled monster known as "Bluebeard".

"Oh, isn't this Joan of Arc? What's the matter, why did you come to such a place?"

Jill greeted Jeanne with a relaxed attitude without haste.Both hands are still tightly holding something wrapped in a cloth stained with discolored blood.

Calm down, this is just an illusion——Joan convinced herself in her heart.An unpleasant feeling like crushing rusted iron, a chill like a cold mist enveloping the whole body, something wrapped in cloth—no, absolutely can’t imagine what it is.That must have been the deadliest thing for Jeanne d'Arc.

"...Enough is enough. End this scene now. It's a pity that he started behaving badly because of my death. But, I—"

"Let me tell you a good thing. This Jill is not a troupe puppet like those troupe members who can only say the lines I specify. Jill de Rais can think with her own will and corrode with her own will. The hero who came to this world is the Servant summoned by my Red Caster."

A surprised Ruler said:

"A follower...that's ridiculous! You are clearly a follower, can you still summon a follower?"

"As long as he is the master of this garden, there is no problem at all. But even so, he is not an existence given a class. Since you are Ruler, you should understand? He just reproduces the soul of Gilles de Rais , the shell is just a fragile old man."

Joan stared hard at Shakespeare.Such a summons was an insult to the hero Gilles de Rais.

"Red Caster, what purpose do you have for doing such a thing—!"

"That's all you need to ask him. Baron, you must have something to say, right?"

Hearing what Shakespeare said, Jill showed a mad smile:

"Yes. Jeanne, I have something I want you to see. I have cut off countless children's heads so far, and every time I feel extremely excited..."

The cloth is slowly peeled off.Is the slow flow of time due to horror?Joan opened her mouth—and whispered in a hoarse voice:
"...Stop it, stop it, Jill!"

Jill didn't stop.Joan of Arc knew intellectually that Jill always cut off the head of the boy she loved and loved him very much.Stop it, Jill.He killed the boy and cut his body open, then dug out his intestines to enjoy the divine touch——

"Look, Joan! This head."

Stripped cloth.Head, you can see a head.This head was—a face he was familiar with, a young man named Matou Shinji.

"And this, and these are—"

The heads are constantly switched, sometimes changing into Arturia's appearance, sometimes changing into Little Jack, and sometimes turning into Sixth Reika, each of whom is a person who makes Joan feel close.

"You know my nickname too! The infamous 'Bluebeard'. I have done almost all kinds of evil deeds in order to offend the god who betrayed the saint! Do you want to hear it? Those children Screams! The desperate groans of the gods!"

"...No...that, it's not allowed...!"

The saint finally let out a mournful cry. She didn't want to see this miserable scene, and she didn't want to see the fall of her most trusted comrade-in-arms and partner.

She instinctively wanted to cover her eyes, but—another force stopped her hand, which was the other half of what the owner of the first head said before the battle.

——If you fail to kill him in time and let him activate the treasure, then you will face a torture, a torture of your life.What happened in your life, what didn't happen, the weakest part of your subconscious will be manifested, and then it will be torn apart.

There is only one way to fight it - believe that you are right, believe in our partners, and don't waver no matter what you see.Because of your beliefs, your partners will never let you down.

Having said that, if it were me, I probably wouldn't be able to make it through.But I believe you can, no matter how much suffering you suffer, you can persevere, because you are such a person, it has nothing to do with the saint, it is just the nature of a girl named Jeanne Darc.

How unfair fate is to let you bear such a burden and experience so much pain.What's even more sad is that you won't complain and moan.But it is precisely because of this that you are so beautiful and admired by so many people, even though you never think of yourself as a saint.

Face everything bravely and speak out what you really think.In this way, even if what you see is hell, as long as your belief remains unchanged, it will become heaven there.

His face was pale, the holy flag fell on the "stage", his hands were shaking...

The closed world is surrounded by the most terrifying scenes.

That's how it was. At first I didn't understand what he was talking about. Only after seeing it with my own eyes did I realize that it was an unimaginable hell.

To deal the cruelest blow at the weakest point of the human heart, if I were the only one, I might really be crushed.

But, Red Caster, you are mistaken, I am not alone.

My friends are here, always there, they are supporting me, they are waiting for me, and so is the "he" in front of me.

So, so—

His hands were still shaking, and his face was still ugly, but those shaking eyes were clear again.

"Stop it, Jill."

It wasn't screaming, it wasn't begging, it wasn't evasion, but it was an unquestionable voice, just like when she commanded the entire French army and gave orders.Although she never puts on a condescending air, she has a courage that cannot be violated.

"Jeanne...?" Gilles de Rais trembled and lowered her head subconsciously.

"I feel very sad for your depravity. It is undeniable that there is indeed my reason for this. But Jill, I want to tell you that I have wanted to tell you since I knew you became 'Bluebeard' - you are wrong .It has nothing to do with the gods, nothing to do with the saint, nothing to do with anything, just want to be your friend, as a human being, to tell you that you are wrong and irreparably wrong. If I was still there, I would Stop you, but—"

"But you are no longer here. The country you saved, the people you saved, the damned king. Even the god you believed in—he led you on such a path, but gave you such an ending. God It's not compassionate at all, he's just playing with your life, he's just playing with humans."

Gilles de Rais's eyes seemed to be burning, but there was no expression on his face.This was completely different from the excitement he had shown before.

"Look around, look at these corpses, look at these heads, I have done the most vicious and serious blasphemy that can be done in this world. But no matter how I kill or blaspheme, I By the time I noticed, I had been on the path of pursuing evil for eight years. The wailing and mourning of thousands of young children had all disappeared into the darkness of nothingness In the end, it was not gods who destroyed me, but human beings who had the same endless desires as me. The church and the king found me guilty and arrested me and executed me. They just took a fancy to my wealth and territory and wanted to occupy them It’s just a trick for my own sake. Their behavior is not so much for punishing my evil, but for naked plunder! At this time, I realized how bad God is, and he will not punish Humans only play with humans."

Joan shook her head slowly: "No, you are wrong, Jill, God is not what you think?"

"Then how should you explain what happened to you? You were slandered as a heretic, witch, and you were burned on the stake? See the reality clearly, Joan of Arc."

"It is you who should see the reality, Jill! I have never been a saint, I am a sinner, a sinner who has robbed countless lives, a sinner like you!"

From the first time she went to the battlefield, from the first time she killed someone, Joan of Arc knew that she was a sinner, so she never lamented her fate.

"That's my sin, something that belongs only to me. Jill, you are the same. Your sin is something that belongs only to you. Even if there is no atonement, this despair is still something that belongs only to you."

Joan grabbed his chest and moved her face closer.Jill froze for a moment.

So beautiful, he thought.The girl who stared at him with anger was so beautiful that it sent chills down the spine.

At the same time, he also realized his mistake.

For this saint who does not regard herself as a saint, whether she is in purgatory or hell, or even in heaven, she probably will not change in any way.As if she had no time to worry, she was always running around, giving her life for something—

"It's wrong to blame God and blame others. You and I are both sinners, and there is no way to atone for the people who have become victims! Face up to your crimes, Jill, we can only embrace this forever This kind of distress and despair, it is impossible to start all over again. The only thing we can do is to lend our shoulders to the living, and that is the meaning of our heroic spirits."

Jill shed tears and knelt down on the ground. He held Jeanne's hand tightly and begged:
"—me, shall we never be forgiven?"

"God will forgive everything, but the children you killed and the soldiers I killed will not forgive us. This sin, this guilt, is the punishment that must be endured forever... It doesn't matter Yes, I will lend you my shoulder."

Sins will never be erased one day.

Although they hate themselves as sinners, they still save the world as heroic spirits—that is the punishment they were given, and it is also salvation.

"I understand, Jeanne. Although it's only for a short period of time, I feel extremely happy to be able to talk to you again."

Evil deeds will not be forgiven.

Atonement will never come to an end.

Even though all this was announced by the saint herself, Jill's voice seemed quite calm.

In fact, this is a very simple fact.

He deeply loves this girl.She is neither a saint nor a girl who saves the country, but she just likes Jeanne Darc.His love for this girl who was like a warm sunshine was so deep that he immediately went crazy because she was killed.

(End of this chapter)