[FDJ]Chapter 37: Burning Flames

Awakening from a dream, the perpetual scene of burning persisted, branded upon the soul like an indelible curse.

After hearing Suzuki's sleep talk multiple times last night, Jeanne d'Arc specifically blessed him before he went to sleep tonight. Suzuki quickly fell asleep and soon sank into a deep nightmare.

The female slave sent by Attila yesterday was driven away from the camp by Suzuki, using the excuse of "disturbing the magus research." Of course, he didn't propose to return them to Attila. He had such a thought, but Jeanne d'Arc immediately stopped him. Attila treated Suzuki kindly, but that didn't mean she was a tolerant ruler. On the contrary, it was because of her arrogance that she had a slightly favorable impression of Suzuki, who was different from ordinary people. In the eyes of that ruler, the two slaves were worth less than the bowl they ate from. If the bowl wasn't good, it would be destroyed and replaced, let alone slaves.

"If you send back these two slaves, it will anger Attila. It's better not to do that and let the two of them stay outside at night," Jeanne d'Arc advised Suzuki.

"...Your blessings don't work either." Suzuki appeared more exhausted than before falling asleep, sweat dampening his hair.

"So, do you want the two slaves outside to come in and accompany you?" Jeanne d'Arc stopped praying and turned to smile at Suzuki, who was startled awake from the nightmare.

"Ah? No need! No need!"

Tonight, there was no need to worry about the likes of Assassin causing trouble. Jeanne d'Arc's injuries from her battle with Rider during the day were also almost healed, and everything was turning for the better. However, the burden in her heart grew heavier, not much more comfortable than Suzuki, who was affected by nightmares.

"Just kidding. It's not yet midnight, so sleep peacefully. The battles in the coming days will only intensify. I need you to provide magical energy for me." Jeanne d'Arc was different from regular Servants; she had almost no Noble Phantasm, and in reality, Suzuki needed to provide very little magical energy for her. If she decided to use her own Noble Phantasm, she wouldn't need Suzuki to provide her with magical energy anymore. "Are you feeling okay today?"

"No problem. I can't support you in magic, but I have sufficient magical energy." Suzuki lay in the bedding, trying to cover up the lingering image of the burning flames with memories of other things. Now, every time he closed his eyes, he would see the unquenchable fire, burning incessantly. The flickering flames brought him a sensory sensation of scorching heat, filling his "vision" wherever he looked.

"Judging by your expression, your nightmare symptoms are completely different from those of an ordinary person." Jeanne suspected that there was a malicious curse on Suzuki, but from her perspective, she couldn't detect any abnormal magical energy in him. The curse, which even she couldn't discern, would probably have been personally inflicted on Suzuki by Satan himself.

That was impossible.

"Master, you had nightmares of raging fire yesterday, and today as well. Personally, I find it unusual," Jeanne didn't know that Suzuki had these dreams almost every time he fell asleep unless he didn't dream at all.

"It's not just for a day or two, but it has been like this all along. Myself..." Suzuki spoke up, but a headache struck him again, preventing him from recalling the most crucial memories.

Jeanne observed the change in Suzuki's expression and, seeing him furrow his brows, reached out to bless him again, alleviating the headache but unable to provide substantial help to her Master.

"Raging fire? It is indeed a scene that is very detestable." Jeanne's voice was soft, and Suzuki didn't quite hear it. He was in a temporary state of relaxation as the headache subsided.

An idea occurred to Jeanne. She suspected that her Master had experienced a severe fire or had been burned by flames just like herself, but she didn't see any burn scars on Suzuki. "Don't dwell on things that cause you pain. Sleep peacefully, Master."

Suzuki fell asleep again, comforted by Jeanne's soothing voice, as if he had taken a painkiller. This time, he didn't have a nightmare and slept peacefully.

Jeanne continued her prayers only after confirming that her Master showed no signs of distress. She understood the pain of being haunted by nightmares, as it was the very source of her torment. If she could choose a different way to die, a straightforward death outside the gates of Paris, she wouldn't feel "ashamed" in the presence of her former comrades.

Dying on the battlefield meant there would be no pain, no time to doubt anyone, no time for fear. The solace of honor and companionship outweighed any painkiller. A sharp blade or arrow piercing one's vital point would lead to losing consciousness in no time.

It is not the fate of facing the most unjust judgment and the most despairing execution alone. In a normal execution by fire, one would quickly lose consciousness in the thick smoke, but Jeanne's final memories before her death were of the same endless flames. Except for her unwavering faith in God, everything else was shaken at that time.

She was "lost" at that moment. Every time she closed her eyes, she could recall fragments of her consciousness being consumed by despair and fear. How wretched and pitiful she was at that time, devoid of even a trace of the glory of the Maid of Orleans. So, even though the flag she once waved was at her side, she couldn't raise it again. She was not Saint Joan d'Arc, just an ordinary peasant girl who died a tragic death in the raging fire. Besides her faith in God, she had nothing left at that time.

["They call her a saint, claiming to have received revelations from God. Yet, in reality, she will be burned by the flames."

"I thought a miracle would happen, that the rain would extinguish the flames that burned her. Look, she's about to breathe her last!"

"She's lying! Lying! A saint who received divine revelations cannot possibly be burned by holy flames!"...]

Initially, English soldiers threatened the crowd that tried to stop the execution with their weapons, while the flames were ignited by an English priest who read out the entirely fallacious verdict. However, before Jeanne lost consciousness, the intense fire burned her flesh, and along with the unbearable heat, doubts from beyond the English people reached her heart.

Jeanne couldn't be angry, nor did she dare to be angry. If she were to harbor resentment towards the ignorant masses, she would be violating her vow to God. She had no sword in her hand, and she never wielded the legendary Sword of Saint Catherine throughout her life.

Tears trickled down her collar, seeping into the unseen gaps of her armor. She indeed had wishes that needed the Holy Grail to be fulfilled. Jeanne had wishes that needed to be realized.

She endured it until the end, never uttering a word on the square of Rouen on May 30, 1431.

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The flames still existed. Suzuki walked on the abandoned streets, unable to distinguish whether he was in a dream or reality. It wasn't until he reached a place divided by flames that he realized he had stopped, uncontrollably.

The School. The word appeared in his mind for no apparent reason.

In the fireless open space, there were other people. Suzuki found himself standing in front of someone, and he could see a petrified sculpture, vividly depicting the ridiculous image of someone desperately trying to flee in their final moments.

Suzuki couldn't utter the person's name, but he felt familiar with them. It was an inadequate magus with a sense of arrogance, yet still holding a hint of goodwill, the Master of Lancer, Medusa...

The golden snake eyes crawled up Suzuki's outstretched hand, and the source of fear, so close at hand, appeared behind him. Unable to distinguish between the dream and reality, Suzuki wanted to shout out, but his body was out of control. It had been that way from the very beginning.

The flames gradually engulfed everything. When Suzuki turned back, enduring the scorching sensation, he couldn't see anyone else. Everything, including the sculpture, had disappeared. Only the fading figure of a female swordsman remained, slowly walking away.

These were the unfinished consequences of Suzuki's "dream" in Fuyuki City. Good fortune lasted only for a moment. He encountered the strongest swordsman Servant at that time, with no chance of escape, only hoping for an easy death. Both Servant and Master were in the same situation.

"Sorry, I was saved by all of you, but I couldn't help you when you were in danger." Suzuki "automatically" lowered his head in regret towards the direction where the sculpture had been. If he could go back to the disaster site in Fuyuki City in 2004, he would do just that.

Regardless of the purpose behind their rescue, he had not repaid the favor.

The flames continued to burn, never extinguishing.

As he turned his head, Suzuki found himself in a medieval town he had never been to before. The flames were confined to a small area, concentrated on the piles of firewood and the torches held by a few soldiers.

Looking up, Suzuki saw a desperate girl, the flames licking away her last traces of life until the beautiful girl within the flames lowered her head in acceptance.

No one extended a helping hand. After the flames were ignited, there was no one. Even the crowd seemed more enthusiastic and interested in the outcome than those carrying out the execution.

Squeezing through the human wall with difficulty, the soldiers' spears and axes unable to stop Suzuki, he passed through the final obstacles like a ghost and arrived beneath the pyre.

Finally, he saw her, the girl who perished in the blazing fire, none other than Saber Jeanne d'Arc, whom he inadvertently summoned with the expended Saber Chess Piece.

Suzuki could only be a bystander. He belonged to the future, unable to truly reach the square of Rouen on May 30, 1431. He could only witness Jeanne d'Arc's fading appearance in the raging fire. If she could be dressed in a splendid gown, would she regain the happiness she had never experienced before?

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