Miracle Summoner

"...So it's you?"

Seeing Jeanne [Alter] wielding the Cursed Flag and surrounded by raging flames, Lancelot's brow furrowed.

On his face, the ever-present expression of anguish seemed to grow even deeper.

Lancelot, of course, had not forgotten the existence of Jeanne [Alter].

Rather, as the inverted manifestation of the world's most famous saint, Jeanne d'Arc, anyone who would forget Jeanne [Alter] would be truly strange.

"I won't kill you, only because you have the potential to enter the Holy City, become one of its residents, earn the king's favor, and achieve eternity. As long as you return to your true nature, I believe the king will surely accept you."

Lancelot spoke in a low voice.

The reason Lancelot often carried out missions outside the Holy City was to seek out humans who were qualified to enter the city and become its residents.

After all, not all refugees would willingly come to the Holy City to undergo the Holy Selection.

To ensure that individuals with pure and virtuous souls could be accepted into the city, preserving the spark of humanity, it wasn't enough to perform the Holy Selection only at the main gates of the city. It was also necessary to travel far and wide, selecting those qualified from among the people.

As King Arthur's right hand, Lancelot had been hailed as the most ideal and strongest of the Knights of the Round Table before Galahad appeared. Even against Gawain during the day, though he might not be a match, Lancelot could still fight and hold him off until the sun set and then counterattack. Having served King Arthur since the earliest days, Lancelot was not only a trusted ally but also one of the king's closest friends.

Even Artoria [Alter], when seeing Lancelot, couldn't help but feel a ripple in her heart. Among the Lion King's knights, Lancelot was one of the most valued, even surpassing Gawain in some respects.

This Lancelot was tasked with finding and escorting those qualified into the Holy City.

Because of this, Lancelot held a status comparable to Gawain. Even the Lion King, who now regarded human life as worthless, showed some degree of favoritism toward Lancelot—a bias that even Gawain and Agravain didn't always receive.

Moreover, Lancelot was upright and noble in character, rivaling Gawain in virtue. It was precisely this integrity that led him to spare Jeanne [Alter], hoping she could shed her wickedness and return to her saintly form. In that case, she would undoubtedly be welcomed into the Holy City.

Unfortunately, Lancelot was gravely mistaken.

After all, while Jeanne [Alter] was an inversion of Jeanne d'Arc, she wasn't Jeanne herself but merely a counterfeit. She could never return to being a saint.

And so...

"A king I can't stand is bad enough with that cold-blooded woman. If someone else with the same face as hers dares to call themselves king in front of me, saying they'll accept me, I'll definitely feel like throwing up."

Jeanne [Alter] spoke with an exceptionally venomous tone.

"And don't talk to me about returning to my true nature in front of a counterfeit like me. I'm no saint—I'm a witch, the Dragon Witch who commands dragons."

With that, Jeanne [Alter] raised her flag high.

"Come!"

"The time for revenge has come!"

"After seeing this, let's see if you can still spout such nonsense!"

"Return to my true nature?"

"What a joke!"

"Behold, the manifestation of all wickedness!"

Jeanne [Alter] shouted loudly.

"This is the roar of my soul, forged by hatred!"

Jeanne [Alter] unleashed her Noble Phantasm.

〈Roar, My Rage (La Grondement Du Haine)〉

Then, flames raged across the heavens.

"BOOM—!"

As the roar resounded like thunder, a violent sea of flames erupted as if from a volcanic explosion, resembling the fire of the sun crashing onto the earth.

The flames surged like an avalanche of red, devouring everything in their path.

The ground was engulfed in fire.

The temperature soared to its limits.

The surging magic transformed into tangible flames, amplifying Jeanne [Alter]'s Noble Phantasm to an unprecedented level of power.

"...!"

Lancelot's expression tightened, and he raised his sword without hesitation, slashing it down toward the incoming inferno.

"Boom!"

With the violent trembling of the atmosphere, the raging sea of fire was split apart, surging past Lancelot's sides like two tidal waves.

"Haah!"

Gripping his ominous sword tightly, Lancelot leapt toward Jeanne [Alter].

His speed was astonishing.

And it was only natural.

With the blessings bestowed upon him, Lancelot's Tragic Resolve trait allowed him to abandon his sense of duty, focus on the immediate battle, and completely compensate for his weaknesses. Furthermore, his Knight of the Lake skill had been enhanced, permanently adding a "+" modifier to all his stats except luck, multiplying his strength several times over.

The cursed sword he wielded was originally a holy blade, no less than King Arthur's sword of selection, also bestowed by the Lady of the Lake. Sharing the same origin, its resilience was equal to King Arthur's sword. However, after Lancelot used it to kill his fellow knights, the blade fell into darkness, becoming cursed and ominous.

Even so, it remained an A-rank Noble Phantasm, one of the highest-grade treasures. When wielding it, all of Lancelot's abilities were further enhanced by a full rank. Furthermore, having once slain a dragon, it dealt additional damage to Dragon-attribute Servants.

This was Lancelot's Noble Phantasm—〈The Unfading Light of the Lake(Arondight)〉.

As a knight whose martial prowess was unparalleled, with enhancements from his Noble Phantasm, boosted skills, and the blessings elevating his spirit origin, Lancelot became nearly invincible, second only to the Lion King and Gawain within the Holy City.

Now, with his cursed sword in hand, Lancelot leapt high, crossing the flames to land directly in front of Jeanne [Alter].

"Having reached the limit, surpassing the boundary, oh king beyond, bear witness to this light!"

With Lancelot's solemn declaration, a serene, mirror-like radiance emanated from the cursed sword.

"This is...!?"

Jeanne [Alter]'s expression changed.

She recognized the origin of this technique.

It was a strike that overloaded the power of The Unfading Light of the Lake, causing its latent magic to overflow and unleash destructive force.

This was a blow that had once defeated Jeanne [Alter], a power meant for anti-army use but forcibly converted into an anti-personnel Noble Phantasm.

Its name was...

〈Arondight Overload Breaking All Restraints - Overloaded Light of the Lake〉

Lancelot unleashed a full-powered slash.

"Tch...!"

Jeanne [Alter] attempted to respond but failed.

Because...

"Haahhhhh!"

A sharp cry suddenly cut through the air, interjecting between the two.