On the other side of the battlefield, Chevalier d'Éon faced off against Marie (Caster).
The situation here could not have been more different from the fight between Sanson (Assassin), Black Marie, and Mozart.
Chevalier d'Éon stood with tears welling in the corners of her eyes as she looked at Marie (Caster). She bit her lip hard, trying to use the pain to keep herself from breaking down like a child, and fought to keep her voice steady.
"Can I… really still call myself a knight of France?"
Marie (Caster) listened and gave her a firm, gentle nod, once again affirming d'Éon's identity as a knight who protected France.
"Of course, d'Éon. In my heart, you will always be a knight who cares deeply for France—like a lily in full bloom."
Hearing those words, Chevalier d'Éon's lips trembled uncontrollably. She felt an itch at the corners of her eyes and on her cheeks. Knowing exactly what it meant, she lowered her head so Marie wouldn't see her looking so pathetic.
Someone still acknowledged her as a knight of France?
Even after all the atrocities she had committed, after everything she had done to hurt France… there was still someone who believed she was a worthy knight of her country?
"Thank you… Queen Marie."
d'Éon forced the words out without letting her voice crack, thanking Marie from the bottom of her heart.
Marie (Caster) looked at her with understanding. She knew her words had reached her. Then, as if remembering something, she smiled warmly.
"d'Éon, when the time comes, my Master in Chaldea will summon you. Make sure you answer the call, okay?"
"Then we can fight together—for our Master, for the Human Order, and for France."
The moment she heard that, Chevalier d'Éon answered almost instantly, as if afraid the chance would slip away if she hesitated.
"I will definitely go, Queen Marie. I swear I will."
"Even if the Master doesn't summon me, I will find my way to that place called Chaldea and atone for the sins I've committed."
Chevalier d'Éon's heart finally found some comfort.
Even after believing her brutal actions had disqualified her from being a knight, even after thinking she had become an accomplice to France's suffering and no longer deserved to call herself French—someone still recognized her as a knight of France.
Not only that, she now had the chance to make amends for her mistakes in Chaldea.
That thought gave her new strength and purpose.
Even though her body was under the influence of Madness Enhancement and kept attacking Marie and the others against her will, the warmth in her heart granted her immense power. For a brief moment she broke free from the berserk control and forced her body to stand still.
Marie (Caster) understood what d'Éon was trying to do. She slowly raised the ball in her hands.
The ball gradually transformed into a shining crystal orb, radiating brilliant light. It spun around Marie (Caster) before merging with her body. Her outfit changed completely into something far more elegant and radiant—regal attire befitting the French royal family.
"My love shines brilliantly, forevermore."
As Marie (Caster) activated her Noble Phantasm and recited its name, she spread her arms wide. Pure white light poured from her body.
The entire battlefield was instantly filled with sparkling lights like countless stars.
The breathtaking sight made Chevalier d'Éon spread her arms, welcoming the shower of luminous particles—even though they carried destructive power.
Marie (Caster)'s Noble Phantasm was an area-of-effect ability that damaged enemies while buffing allies.
Yet when those star-like lights fell on Chevalier d'Éon, she felt no pain. Perhaps the comfort in her heart shielded her from it. Or perhaps… she had never truly been an enemy. She had always been the knight who protected France.
In the end, with a peaceful smile on her face and redemption in her heart, Chevalier d'Éon faded away.
...
Adam had watched the entire sequence of events unfold.
He had seen both Sanson (Assassin)'s departure and Chevalier d'Éon's.
However…
Adam pursed his lips in a strange expression. He glanced toward where Sanson had vanished, then toward where d'Éon had disappeared.
While he had sent both Maries out as planned, the results were… quite different from what he had expected.
Chevalier d'Éon had found peace in her heart and left with a smile.
Sanson (Assassin), on the other hand, had his already unstable Spirit Origin explode due to a complete mental collapse.
The two outcomes were polar opposites.
In Adam's original plan, d'Éon's side had gone exactly as anticipated.
But Sanson's side…
He turned his gaze toward Black Marie.
She was still laughing uncontrollably, her beautiful bell-like laughter ringing out.
Honestly, it was a little terrifying.
The general direction Black Marie had taken was correct. First, make Sanson realize what he had done. Force him to understand how far he had strayed from his original ideals.
After all, without breaking down the old, you can't build the new. A person must first recognize their mistakes before they can correct them.
However…
The follow-up should have been to show him that he still had a chance to fix things.
There was still Chaldea. He could join them, correct his path, and turn his guillotine once more toward the true enemies threatening the Human Order.
That way, at least Sanson would know he still had an opportunity to atone and sharpen his blade for saving sinners again.
But Black Marie herself seemed… different from usual. More angry. More unhinged.
She had gone far beyond simply making Sanson realize his errors. She had mocked him straight into Spirit Origin explosion.
The final step—giving him emotional salvation—could no longer be carried out.
Adam scratched his head somewhat helplessly.
While Chaldea could attempt to capture a Servant's Spirit Origin from a Singularity, if the Servant themselves refused to answer the summons, the difficulty would skyrocket.
He could only sigh inwardly.
Oh well. When they returned to Chaldea, he could throw some resources at it and try to summon Sanson again. Then they could have a proper talk.
Still, this mistake couldn't really be blamed on Black Marie.
After all, the negative emotions she had picked up from him earlier were what had pushed her into this state.
Thinking of that, Adam recalled the way Black Marie had relentlessly probed into the deepest parts of his heart earlier.
Those words had unintentionally dragged up old memories—events involving a certain red-haired member of the Tohsaka family, the overly worried daughter of an exorcist clan, and others.
Adam rubbed his brow, feeling a wave of exhaustion.
...
Not far from Adam, Kiyohime, Drake, Elizabeth Bathory, and Ciel were gathered.
Elizabeth's attention wasn't on Adam at all. She was staring excitedly at Ciel with sparkling eyes, as if looking at her idol.
"Eh?!"
"So you're an idol? And not just any idol—a cosmic-level superstar!"
"Senpai—no, Master! You have to teach me! How can I become a shining idol across the universe just like you?!"
The moment Elizabeth learned that Ciel was a universe-class idol, she became incredibly excited. It was as if she had seen a possible future for herself.
She looked ready to kneel and beg Ciel to take her as an apprentice and reveal the secrets of idolhood.
However, Ciel had zero interest in teaching Elizabeth how to become an idol.
She completely ignored the girl's constant chattering. Her mind was focused on something else entirely.
Ciel was watching Adam as he rubbed his brow with a tired expression, concern written clearly on her face.
She had originally wanted to observe everything Adam experienced in this Singularity. But after seeing the tension between him and Black Marie, she sensed something was wrong.
"Is that matter still affecting him?"
Ciel muttered quietly.
Both Kiyohime and Drake looked at Adam with worry. They could tell something was off with him.
But they were even more curious—what exactly could trouble Adam this much? He was usually such a carefree, fun-loving person who patiently listened to their worries and helped untangle their emotional knots.
After some internal hesitation, Ciel finally stepped forward and approached Adam.
The other three followed right behind her.
Adam was still lost in thought, his mind wandering, and hadn't noticed the four people now standing beside him.
Ciel gently took hold of his arm.
Even though her touch was soft, the sudden contact triggered Adam's long-honed instincts. He nearly summoned several Beasts out of reflex.
But the moment he saw it was Ciel, he let out a long breath of relief.
"It's you, Ciel. Next time, maybe call out to me first."
Then, trying to return to his usual demeanor, he added in a teasing tone:
"If that doesn't work, you can always bite my ear like last time. I'll definitely know it's you."
His words instantly threw Ciel off balance.
The ear-biting was something she only did during very specific… intimate moments with him.
Thinking about that particular act made her face flush bright red. She quickly shook her head to clear the thought.
There were more important things right now.
Ciel looked at him again with clear worry in her eyes.
"Adam… are you still bothered by that…?"
Adam glanced at her in slight surprise, then realized she must have overheard his earlier conversation with Black Marie. It seemed her enhanced power had also improved her hearing.
He put on a carefree expression and waved his hand dismissively.
"No way, Ciel~"
"You're just imagining things. I got over that ages ago."
The other three, hearing the exchange, grew even more curious and concerned.
"What previous state?"
"Adam, did something happen before you came to Chaldea?"
Both Drake and Kiyohime asked with worry.
Seeing the concern on their faces, Adam waved them off with an easy smile.
"It really is just something from the past. A bit… embarrassing, that's all."
"It's nothing worth mentioning. Don't worry about it. It can't affect me anymore."
While his words and expression were perfectly controlled—enough that even Ciel, who knew him so well, couldn't spot anything off—his mind was quietly drifting elsewhere.
...
Meanwhile, Black Jeanne was in serious trouble.
She had been fighting three Servants by herself: Mash, the other Mash, and Jeanne.
Even setting aside the two half-baked opponents, just the one Mash alone had already given Black Jeanne plenty of headaches.
Now, all her own Servants had been wiped out. She was completely alone.
Worse still, several of the Servants who had defeated her subordinates had now joined the fight against her—including Siegfried and Saint George.
With those two reinforcements, Black Jeanne was now facing five Servants at once.
As expected, a coordinated strike from the group sent her flying dozens of meters. She barely managed to keep her weapon from being knocked out of her hands.
Black Jeanne struggled back to her feet, glaring at the five Servants in front of her with utter disbelief.
They clearly had the numerical advantage—five against one.
Under normal circumstances, such overwhelming superiority should have made them relax a little, right?
So why were they still fighting with everything they had, completely serious?
Black Jeanne couldn't find even the slightest opening to counterattack. It was almost as if her strength terrified them.
But she still had one last trump card.
Clinging to that final hope, Black Jeanne forced herself upright and let out her signature mocking French laugh.
"Heh heh heh."
"You've been fighting me for so long and still haven't noticed?"
"Besides the Servants I brought with me, I still have one more under my command."
The others immediately grew wary and scanned their surroundings.
But no matter how hard they looked, they couldn't find this supposed remaining Servant.
Only the special Mash seemed to sense something off from Black Jeanne's words.
Where was Gilles de Rais (Caster)?
***
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