"...When it comes to pestering endlessly, you guys are probably the winners, aren't you?"
Watching the two desperately blocking her, Jeanne Alter's eyes flickered with an ambiguous light.
However, Jeanne Alter quickly swept this useless emotion to the back of her mind, and the corner of her mouth re-hung its trademark mocking smile.
"But this is as far as you go—Fafnir, burn that village girl over there to ashes for me!"
Hearing Jeanne Alter's command, Fafnir, who had been holding back, roared. Scorching Dragon Breath gathered in its mouth, aimed at the position of Takumi and the other two.
Fafnir was a Dragon Kind of an even higher rank than Tarasque. Even its ordinary Dragon Breath possessed an effect similar to a Noble Phantasm. Coupled with its hard scales, it was essentially a heavy mobile fortress; conventional Servants were no match for it at all.
Dark and scorching light illuminated the battlefield. Marie and Amadeus had the will but lacked the strength, unable to spare a hand to intervene.
Fafnir's movements were massive. Besides, Jeanne had been splitting her attention to monitor the situation on the battlefield, so how could she not see it?
So, has it come to this?
Jeanne, who had anticipated this, wasn't surprised. Instead, she was quite calm.
"Mr. Georgios, I leave the rest of the baptism to you."
The baptism was already more than halfway done. Even Georgios alone could complete the remaining part.
After obtaining Georgios's agreement, Jeanne picked up the flag beside her and prepared to stand up.
Her other hand was suddenly grabbed tightly.
Turning her head, unsurprisingly, it was Takumi's doing.
The Last Master of Humanity was looking at her with stubborn eyes, his extended hand showing absolutely no sign of letting go.
As the baptism progressed, the burden on his body was gradually disappearing, and Takumi's consciousness finally returned to clarity.
But who knew that the moment he woke up, he would face this kind of situation?
Even though the thoughts in his mind were tangled like a ball of hemp, Takumi still reacted instinctively.
But faced with Takumi's retention, Jeanne didn't speak. She just looked at Takumi gently.
Why are you looking at me like that? Even if you just say something, it would be fine...
Under Jeanne's gaze, Takumi's eyes began to waver uncontrollably. His hand gradually lost strength, and finally, following gravity, it smashed onto the ground.
As if losing all the strength in his body, Takumi lowered his head.
Jeanne gently rubbed Takumi's hair.
Then she turned around resolutely, holding the flag and standing in the position between Fafnir and Takumi & Georgios.
'I really am an unqualified Servant. We already made a promise, yet I'm breaking it at a time like this...'
Silently apologizing in her heart, Jeanne didn't look back. Instead, she raised the flag in her hand high and revealed a smile.
"But isn't that what Heroic Spirits are? Returning from the past to the present, to open a path for those who can still reach a further future. There is nothing more romantic than this, is there?"
Golden light spilled from the flag. In this brilliant light, Jeanne's smile seemed capable of piercing through people's hearts.
Her passionate voice spread across the entire battlefield, allowing everyone to hear it clearly.
"Of course! There couldn't possibly be anything more romantic than this!"
Marie didn't hesitate and responded as a matter of course.
"Mmh mmh, well said. Even I can't help but feel my blood boiling a little!"
Amadeus shook his head and sighed with emotion.
Both of them looked incredibly wretched at this moment, but incredibly brilliant smiles bloomed on their faces, as if they weren't the ones being beaten into such a state.
Unknowingly, all the Servants fell silent. Only the movements of their hands, under the effect of Madness Enhancement, did not stop.
"Ah, ah! This is Jeanne! The true Saint Jeanne! The Jeanne that one can never forget after seeing just once!!!"
Seeing this scene, Gilles de Rais was overcome with excitement. raising his hands high, tears falling like they cost nothing.
Jeanne Alter, however, broke down. Especially after hearing Gilles' words, she flew into a rage.
"Fafnir, what are you doing! Accelerate! Accelerate for me! Use maximum output to burn them all together!"
Jeanne Alter roared.
Fafnir loyally executed Jeanne Alter's command. The accumulation of magic power became faster and greater.
It was just that Fafnir didn't seem able to attend to two commands at once; its speed was clearly a bit slower.
"So there is no need to worry. We will open a path for you on this pitch-black wilderness, wide enough for people to walk. Just walk forward! Go to a place further than we can reach!"
"O flag of mine, protect my comrade!"
"[Luminosité Eternelle (My Lord is Here)]!"
As Jeanne finished her chant, pale golden light spread out, firmly blocking the front and back of Jeanne.
Fafnir's Dragon Breath was finally unleashed. Scorching magical energy, like a meteor crashing to earth, tore through the air and slammed heavily onto the Noble Phantasm created by Jeanne.
"Ugh—"
Almost instantly, Jeanne was suppressed by the terrifying attack and forced back two steps. The pale golden light also swayed ominously.
If it were Jeanne in her prime, blocking this Dragon Breath probably wouldn't be too difficult. But the current Jeanne was just a half-crippled Servant. It was uncertain if her Magic Resistance, originally EX rank, even reached C rank now. Even her Noble Phantasm was incomplete.
But Jeanne showed no fear. Her azure eyes stared ahead, desperately holding back Fafnir's breath.
Looking at Jeanne's back, Takumi, who took all this in, finally let his tears burst forth.
Jeanne's figure standing in front was so dazzling, so scorching, but Takumi felt like his heart was being twisted by a knife.
His nose soured, his heart felt like it was being squeezed, and waves of pain assaulted Takumi's brain.
Did Takumi not anticipate this situation? As somewhat of a pessimist, how could he not have thought of it?
It was just—
'But why did all of this have to come so fast...'
Tears blurred his vision.
Everything was too fast, never pausing for a moment because of Takumi's pleas.
Even though Takumi had prayed over and over in his heart.
It had only been three days. Counting from when he met Jeanne, it hadn't even been three days. Yet this girl had become the salvation of the boy's life.
For others, this might sound a bit exaggerated.
For Takumi, it was unquestionable.
Since Takumi recovered from his injuries alone in Chaldea, abandoned by the world, this girl was the first person he met.
Like suddenly being grabbed by someone after slipping and falling off a cliff, no one could imagine the surprise and peace of mind Takumi felt when he saw the girl.
It was this girl who pulled him up from the abyss of despair. It was this girl who was the first not to dislike his current appearance. It was this girl who listened to him talk about his feelings all night...
If possible, Takumi really wanted to be more selfish and hold onto Jeanne's hand tightly, never letting go.
Takumi extended his hand bearing the Command Spells, holding it in front of him.
"Command Spell—Please help this noble soul carry out her will—"
Pop—
Crimson light flashed and vanished. One of the three Command Spells on the back of Takumi's hand was gone.
With the use of the Command Spell, the teetering golden light in front became much more stable.
Feeling the pure Mana appearing out of thin air in her body, the corners of Jeanne's mouth, who was still gritting her teeth in support, couldn't help but rise a few degrees.
Without hesitation, Jeanne poured all the Mana into her Noble Phantasm.
In the distance, Jeanne Alter was still urging Fafnir to increase the firepower.
The golden light continued to contend with the dark breath. The entire battlefield was divided into two halves by these two lights.
Maybe a few minutes? A dozen seconds? A few seconds? Takumi wasn't clear how long this unbalanced confrontation lasted.
But he saw clearly as that light shrank step by step from ten meters to one meter.
Golden particles of light were drifting away. Sweat evaporated as soon as it appeared. The armor on her hands had long been blasted away by the scorching magical energy to who knows where. Her sleeves were also burned into tatters, revealing the girl's white, lotus-root-like arms.
'Right, I seem to have forgotten to say goodbye...'
Jeanne thought in a trance. She turned her head slightly, but only had time to reveal a smile.
Then she vanished into the scorching breath, leaving only a flag still standing in its place.
Baptism Progress — 100%.