The battle began and ended just as abruptly.
By the time Rias had risen from her chair, Xenovia and Irina were already unconscious, leaving no opportunity for her to intervene.
Still…
"Thank goodness you didn't kill them outright."
Rias sighed, pressing her aching forehead as she sat back down with a complicated expression.
"If you'd killed representatives sent by the Church, there'd be absolutely no turning back."
"I'm the one who did it; what does it have to do with you devils? You could just push all the blame onto me—"
"Jeanne-san!"
Rias slammed her hand down onto the desk.
At this moment, Rias's aura completely overwhelmed Jeanne Alter, her pretty face stern and filled with restrained anger.
"That's not something friends do."
Jeanne Alter opened her mouth slightly, but eventually said nothing, just irritably clicking her tongue.
Rias worried that if Xenovia and Irina died here, the Church might use it as a pretext for war against the devils.
But Jeanne Alter knew the likelihood of that was low. Among the three factions, the Church—or rather, the angels—were probably least eager to restart the war. Given the strength of that biblical God, he could have easily annihilated the other factions back then. Yet he chose peace, concluding the war in a delicate stalemate.
If Jeanne Alter remembered correctly, the God of this world was already dead, having perished alongside the original Four Great Maou during the war.
The death of God would severely shake humanity's faith, so Michael and the others kept it a secret. And the true cause wasn't even the Maou, but the Beast Emperor 666. Jeanne Alter wasn't sure how many people actually knew this truth.
Michael and the other angels couldn't possibly be foolish enough to believe their Lord died because of the four Maou, could they?
God had paid a heavy price for peace; thus, Michael and the angels would undoubtedly do everything they could to avoid another war.
Even though the holy swords were stolen and Xenovia and Irina attacked, while the Church might protest, the ultimate decision-makers were the angels. Since the girls weren't seriously hurt, and because the attacker wasn't a devil, war was unlikely.
And even if Jeanne Alter was wrong—if war did break out—then, as the cause of conflict, Jeanne Alter believed it was her responsibility to stop it by annihilating the Church.
She had a clear sense of her current strength—Maou-level, possessing tremendous magical power but lacking efficiency in precise attacks. Still, with a powerful weapon advantage like her Noble Phantasm, she might at least hold her own against beings like God or the Infinite Dragon God, Ophis.
Of course, that was the worst-case scenario… She hoped the Church and angels would be smarter than that. After all, she considered herself a pacifist—probably. By FGO standards, she'd classify herself as "Lawful Neutral" or possibly "Lawful Evil."
From Yuuto Kiba, she learned [Excalibur] had been split into seven swords: one vanished during the ancient war, the fallen angel cadre Kokabiel stole three, Xenovia and Irina brought two here, and one remained at the Church.
Kokabiel was a cadre-level fallen angel who survived the Great War, recorded as a powerful entity nearly rivaling the Maou in strength.
Although Rias's group spoke of Kokabiel with deep apprehension, Jeanne Alter felt nothing. She'd never even heard of Kokabiel before—had he really appeared in the Bible?
She didn't know, never having read much of the Bible beyond references to the Great Red Dragon and the Beast 666.
"So, if that black-winged birdman stole the holy swords, why are these two even in Kuoh Town?"
Jeanne Alter kicked the unconscious Xenovia casually as she asked Rias. "I can't imagine Church members begging devils for help against fallen angels."
"You're half-right, Jeanne-san," Rias answered. "They did come asking for our cooperation, but not to retrieve the swords. Instead, they wanted us not to interfere. Apparently, the Church fears we devils might collude with fallen angels to destroy the swords. Absurd."
Rias snorted disdainfully.
Two members of an enemy faction arrogantly entered their territory, demanded non-interference, and even threatened repercussions if the devils cooperated with the fallen angels. Only someone as patient as Rias would've refrained from attacking immediately.
"They're so arrogant, yet you managed to hold back?"
Jeanne Alter stared at Rias incredulously. "They're clearly taking advantage of your good manners. If it had been me, those two would have grass two meters tall growing over their graves by now, and I'd deliver their heads directly to the Church, massacring those idiots and sending them straight to heaven to meet their god!"
"I beg you, please don't do that. Ordinary people couldn't survive a second Great War."
Rias sighed wearily, knowing full well Jeanne Alter had both motive and strength—if anyone could send Church members to meet God, it would indeed be Jeanne Alter.
"They came here because Kokabiel, who stole the three holy swords, has appeared in Kuoh Town. We don't yet know his intentions."
Rias narrowed her eyes, glancing pointedly at the [Excalibur Rapidly] in Jeanne Alter's hand.
"That sword is one of the three Kokabiel stole. But when you recovered it, you didn't see him, only a rogue priest?"
"Yep. Those rogue priests are usually fallen angel underlings, right?"
Jeanne Alter smirked cruelly. "That crazy priest barely betrayed the last three fallen angels a short while ago, and now he's already found someone else willing to hire him? Good perks too, given he received a nice new toy right after joining."
A powerful holy sword lethal to devils, casually called "a nice toy" by Jeanne Alter.
"Not everyone can wield a holy sword," Rias explained grimly, eyes lowered. "That rogue priest must've had the aptitude, so Kokabiel took interest."
Jeanne Alter noticed Kiba Yuuto's expression darken even further at this.
"If you want to track down these stolen swords, you'll need to find Kokabiel first."
As Jeanne Alter turned to leave, Rias called out a reminder.
"Don't worry, I have my own methods."
Waving dismissively, Jeanne Alter exited the Occult Research Club, leaving Xenovia and Irina behind—but taking their holy swords with her.
Stripped of their primary weapons, the two Church members posed little threat. Jeanne Alter wasn't concerned for Koneko or the others.
When Jeanne Alter stepped outside the old school building, someone ran up behind her.
"Is it really okay to leave your master's side so casually, Koneko?"
Jeanne Alter turned calmly to the petite figure hurrying after her.
"The President won't mind," Koneko replied dully, her voice characteristically devoid of emotion.
Koneko obviously wanted to speak with Jeanne Alter privately, but upon standing face-to-face, she hesitated.
Jeanne Alter finally broke the silence. "Did you need something?"
Koneko avoided Jeanne Alter's gaze nervously. "If… Jeanne-senpai plans on destroying the holy swords…" She paused, uncertainly continuing in a lower voice. "Could you… maybe… give Yuuto-senpai the chance to help destroy them with you?"
Afraid of rejection, Koneko hurriedly added, "If you agree, I can… I can cook for you. One day, a week… even a month."
Remembering Koneko's previous attempt—a massive pile of fish dishes—Jeanne Alter shivered internally. Koneko, do you have some grudge against fish? Or are you just mercifully reuniting whole fish families?
She hadn't actually intended to destroy the swords yet. Ideally, she'd love to smash them right in front of the King of Knights, enjoying Artoria's frustrated expression. But since she couldn't actually see that cold-blooded woman here, letting Kiba destroy them would be fine. They were genuinely weak anyway, cluttering her home more than anything else.
Misunderstanding Jeanne Alter's silence as hesitation, Koneko panicked, blurting out desperately:
"If… if Jeanne-senpai agrees… I can… cook wearing only an apron and nothing underneath."
"…What?"
Jeanne Alter nearly choked on her own saliva, stunned by Koneko's unexpected offer.
Koneko herself realized what she'd said, her eyes widening in horror as her face turned bright red.
Before Jeanne Alter could utter a single word, Koneko bolted away at incredible speed, vanishing like lightning.
"Koneko…"
Jeanne Alter called softly, but Koneko had already disappeared completely.
Twitching at the corners of her mouth, Jeanne Alter scratched her head in bewilderment.
"What the hell… just what kind of image does she have of me?"
Going after Koneko now would only embarrass them both, so Jeanne Alter quickly abandoned the idea.
Closing her eyes, she expanded her magical senses outward, deciding instead to locate the fallen angel Kokabiel.
Having encountered Raynare before, she recognized fallen angelic magic instantly. Given Kuoh Town was under Rias's influence, there shouldn't be many fallen angels here—finding Kokabiel should be straightforward.
Two minutes later, Jeanne Alter opened her eyes, a wicked smile spreading across her face.
"Found~ you~."
...
A tranquil lake mirrored the sky, only disturbed by gentle ripples from the breeze.
On a stone by the shore sat a man—or perhaps an older gentleman—with black hair streaked slightly by age. Handsome yet sinister-looking, he smiled faintly like a stereotypical villain.
Holding a plain fishing rod, he stroked his scruffy chin thoughtfully, eyes gazing over the shimmering water.
"Japan really is nice, so many fun games to pass the time. But the pace can be too quick sometimes. Fishing like this occasionally is good… My, how times change…"
Dressed in a casual summer yukata despite clearly being a foreigner, he sighed with nostalgic contemplation.
Suddenly, he frowned sharply as powerful magic passed over him.
"I've been discovered?"
Before he could react further, a blazing fireball plunged from the sky, impacting nearby and vaporizing lake water instantly, cloaking everything in steam.
From amidst the steam and flames emerged Jeanne Alter in full black armor, her heavy boots crunching burnt earth. She flashed the man a disturbingly cheerful smile.
"Yo, filthy fallen angel. Ready to be reduced to ashes?"
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T/N: koneko... IDK WHO IM JEALOUS OF JEANNE OR KONEKO I WANNA BE IN EITHERS POSITION!!!