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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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Chapter 21
[Protect the girl who fell victim to the Hundred Years’ War].
A quest given to me by the status window.
I didn't understand the meaning of this quest at first.
Saint Jeanne D' Arc was a miracle girl.
She wasn't being protected by someone, she was protecting someone.
But now I understand.
‘A holy mark.’
On the girl's back was a red imprint in the shape of angel wings.
As the girl waved the banner, crimson blood trickled down from those wings.
The more soldiers were healed, the more blood flowed from her wounds.
The highest-rank light attribute awakening ability was known as the Wounds of Christ.
It’s a ‘Stigmata.’
In other words, a scar.
Yet, in all of history, only one stigmata had ever been officially recognized by the Vatican.
Saint Francis of Assisi.
It was said that through years of asceticism and fasting, Saint Francis had a vision on Mount La Verna. In that vision, Jesus Christ appeared to him in the form of a six-winged seraph and imprinted the stigmata upon him.
When he awoke, angelic wings had been etched onto his back.
However, Saint Francis of Assisi had never once bled from those wounds. Nor had he ever suffered any ill effects from them.
‘It’s a fake.’
The stigmata carved into Jeanne D' Arc’s back had been artificially embedded by someone.
A forged stigmata, created to amplify the power of the Maiden’s Banner to its utmost limit.
“……”
The girl bearing those wounds looked exhausted.
She suffered from overwhelming fatigue. She winced in pain when struck by a stone hurled by the enemy.
It was different from what history recorded.
The Jeanne D' Arc described in history was nothing short of a divine warrior an invincible champion of God.
Even when struck in the neck by an arrow, when a rock smashed against her head, or when she leaped from a great height.
Jeanne D' Arc always returned to the battlefield the next day, unscathed.
Like witnessing the resurrection of Christ, her miraculous recoveries inspired unwavering morale among her allies and struck terror into the hearts of the English.
During the final years of the Hundred Years’ War, until the moment she was captured by the English and condemned as a witch to burn at the stake.
She was a warrior of God who could never be felled.
And yet…
The Jeanne D' Arc before me now was nothing more than a frail girl writhing in pain.
She hid it well, but I could sense her suffering.
She had simply grown too accustomed to pain so much so that she no longer knew how to express it.
Could this girl truly survive all the countless trials recorded in history?
‘Impossible.’
Though she carried the Maiden’s Banner, its power came at the cost of Jeanne D' Arc’s own sacrifice.
Even if she used it to heal herself, it would only bring forth more suffering.
A flag of sacrifice, one that prolonged life in exchange for consuming the very soul of its wielder.
—Thank you, my lady.
—Because of you, I am healed.
She could ease the suffering of others, yet endured her own in silence.
This was far removed from the divine warrior of history.
What had happened?
Has history lied?
The official accounts, verified by both France and England?
Doubts swirled in my mind, yet they remained nothing more than speculation.
Only one thing was certain.
[Protect the girl who became the sacrifice of the Hundred Years’ War.]
I had to protect Jeanne D' Arc.
Step by step, I approached her.
Under the pale glow of the moon.
She sat alone by the lakeside, her back bare, the stigmata on display.
Silently, agonizing in solitude.
A saint could never show weakness.
Uplifting the morale of her allies was the duty of a saint, so Jeanne D' Arc endured her suffering alone, hidden away from prying eyes.
"Jeanne."
"Sir Seojun?"
Her violet eyes wavered, startled she hadn't realized I was watching.
She instinctively moved to cover her back, but I raised a hand to stop her.
"Hold still for a moment."
From my subspace backpack, I retrieved a magic potion.
It was a healing potion that Kim Hayoon had given me as a gift before I came to this world.
I uncapped it and carefully poured it over Jeanne D' Arc’s back.
She flinched, as if bracing for the searing pain of holy water.
But the potion had an entirely different effect.
The bleeding stopped, fresh skin formed, and the wounds from the stigmata began to fade.
As expected from a gift from the team leader of the Dawn Constellation, it was top-tier.
‘This thing probably costs a few million won per bottle.’
An absurdly valuable potion for something given as a mere gift.
Jeanne, who had been grimacing in anticipation of pain, now stared in wide-eyed astonishment.
"What did you just use?"
"A very expensive holy water."
"Was it really alright to use something like that on me?"
"Of course. I'm here to help you, Jeanne."
"You're here… to help me?"
"Yes. You were the one who sought out my shop first, weren’t you?"
"……."
"That place isn’t something just anyone can find."
Jeanne looked puzzled, unable to fully grasp my words but that was fine.
"If you’re in pain, don’t endure it alone. Come to me, Jeanne. You don’t need to worry about the bishop."
I had no intention of explaining my abilities to her.
"You're the only one who can enter my shop."
By the time I finished speaking, the potion had fully seeped into her skin.
However, the wounds weren’t completely healed, and if left exposed, they would likely worsen.
Half-healed wounds stinging as they rubbed against clothing I knew that pain all too well.
"We should wrap it up."
"……?"
I took out a roll of bandages from my bag and began wrapping them around her back.
Jeanne tried to get up, startled, but I gently pressed her shoulder down.
"Stay still. If you leave it like this, it’ll only get worse."
"Ugh!"
I wrapped the bandages firmly, ensuring they completely covered the stigmata.
***
To protect Jeanne D' Arc, I had to stay close to her.
Fortunately, that wasn’t difficult.
Even if it was mostly symbolic, she held a commander’s authority as a saint.
With Jeanne's approval, I was able to remain at her side without issue.
Of course, there was some resistance but the saint’s authority was enough to silence any objections.
"You’ll need a fresh bandage."
Every night following a battle, Jeanne D' Arc would visit my shop.
And each time, I would tend to the wounds on her back, healing her stigmata and replacing her bandages.
Thanks to my efforts, the risk of Jeanne D' Arc succumbing to the side effects of her stigmata had lessened.
‘But just treating the stigmata isn’t enough.’
According to history, Jeanne D' Arc would face death three times.
She overcame each of those three deaths, earning her the title of the miraculous saint.
And the first of those deaths was only two days away.
—May 7th, the Siege of Les Tourelles.
During this battle, an English longbowman would fire an arrow that would pierce straight through Jeanne’s neck.
Yet, despite being shot by a longbow boasting a draw weight of 70kg, Jeanne would simply wash her wound with olive oil only to return to battle the very next day, completely unharmed.
It was the first of the miracles that would define her legend.
"Jeanne, in two days, be wary of arrows during the battle."
As I wrapped a bandage around her shoulder, I warned her of the danger to come.
"Arrows?"
"Yes. One will be aimed at your neck."
She hesitated, uncertain whether to believe me but as long as she remained conscious of it, that was enough.
Because I would be the one to stop it.
***
The Siege of Les Tourelles began with an assault from the French army.
"Advance! Keep moving forward!"
"Bring the ladders!"
"Uwaaaaaah!"
As soldiers rushed toward the fortress carrying siege ladders, arrows rained down from the walls.
Jeanne D' Arc stood in the midst of the battlefield, waving her banner.
"Do not falter! The saint is with us!"
"Uwaaaaah!"
The mere presence of the saint sent French morale soaring.
However, contrary to expectations, the battle did not turn in their favor.
The soldiers charged in waves, yet they failed to place the ladders against the fortress walls.
—The moat.
A deep trench had been dug in front of the walls and filled with water, making it impossible to approach.
The soldiers had no choice but to halt before the deep and wide moat.
As the stalemate continued, a priest assisting Bishop Cambrai spoke up.
"Your Excellency, I don't believe we’ll be able to take Les Tourelles today."
"We will simply have to pray for Christ’s miracle."
Despite hearing that the fortress would remain untaken, Bishop Cambrai merely smiled benevolently.
He spoke of a miracle.
At those words, the priest quietly stepped back.
Moments later, French knights began charging into the moat.
Among them were the paladins assigned to Jeanne’s protection.
The English, watching from atop the walls, were quick to react.
"The saint is unguarded!"
"Target the saint!"
"Loose!"
With Jeanne's guards leaving her side, a volley of arrows rained down upon her.
Most of them fell short, failing to reach her but a few found their mark.
And one, in particular, came streaking toward her at terrifying speed.
It was fired by an English Awakener who had been waiting in ambush.
"Protect the saint!"
"Stop the archers!"
The knights, realizing the danger, rushed to shield her.
But it was too late.
Fwiiiiiiiish–!
The enchanted arrow cut through the air like a bolt of lightning, aimed directly at Jeanne’s neck.
Bishop Cambrai watched the unfolding events in silence.
"Block it!"
Her guards drew their swords in a desperate attempt to intercept the shot.
A moment of absolute peril.
The arrow was mere moments away from piercing through Jeanne D' Arc.
BANG!
But it never reached her. Sparks flew as the arrow was deflected midair.
The knights who had hesitated quickly regrouped, forming a protective wall around Jeanne once more.
BANG! BANG!
English archers on the fortress walls collapsed one after another, as if struck by an unseen force.
BANG! BANG!
Bishop Cambrai turned his gaze toward the source of the noise.
"……."
There, standing at a distance, was Choi Seojun firing Napoleon’s Rifle and cutting down the enemy archers one by one.
[PR/N: There’s a character illustration of Jeanne in this chapter.]
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
Join our Discord for release updates!
https://discord.com/invite/dbdMDhzWa2
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