"Hm hm hm hm hm hm~~~"
Humming a tune, Raynare's face was filled with joy. Looking at the exhausted Mittelt and Kalawarna trailing behind her, the corners of her lips curled up slightly. Perhaps it was because of her fallen angel nature—she had definitely awakened some rather unique interests.
After Ren gave his permission, Raynare had led the two back first.
But thinking back to when she bumped into Kuroka before leaving, and the casual ridicule in that woman's tone, Raynare's expression immediately darkened.
That sudden change caused Mittelt and Kalawarna, walking behind her, to tremble involuntarily.
"Raynare-sama seems to be in a bad mood again..."
"This isn't the first time. Probably has to do with that cat-like youkai just now."
"We weren't even the ones taunting this time..."
"Well, we did run our mouths back then."
Having been tormented by Raynare so many times, the two of them could only bottle up their resentment, unable to resist.
And seeing Raynare's recent changes made their hearts burn with excitement.
Who doesn't want to grow stronger? Especially for subordinates like Mittelt and Kalawarna, who were constantly bossed around by Raynare.
Whenever Raynare gained benefits or had her status elevated, they as her underlings would also be lifted up.
Now seeing her strength increasing day by day, how could they not have thoughts of their own?
But sadly, Ren had never paid any attention to the two of them, as if they were nothing more than Raynare's accessories.
Still, the fact that Ren acknowledged them today made their hearts stir.
Being acknowledged is better than being ignored every day...
"If only we could be like Raynare-sama..."
"Then obviously, we'd be dreaming!"
Mittelt immediately glared at Kalawarna—how could she be so unambitious?
Raynare's gaze swept across them from the corner of her eye, her cool voice drifting over.
"What are you two thinking about?"
"Nothing at all, really———"
Their response came swiftly and reflexively, as if they'd done this many times before.
Clearly, this kind of exchange wasn't a one-time thing.
Seeing them wisely shut up, Raynare withdrew her gaze.
She had to hurry back and continue analyzing that piece of the Fallen Angel's Heart.
Even just a part of it was enough to reach the threshold of a High-Class fallen angel. If it were complete...
Maybe she could give that damn cat-like youkai a good beating.
Of course, just a private spar. She wasn't blind—she saw that cat-like creature come out of her master's room this morning. She knew what had happened between them.
Besides, even if there wasn't that kind of relationship, Ren wouldn't allow his pets to kill each other.
As if sensing something, Raynare's eyes sharpened, and she paused in her steps.
From the corner ahead, a figure emerged—long golden hair that marked her as clearly foreign, a slender sword in hand, and a presence that made Raynare feel danger. The darkness inside her stirred with caution. It was a force that countered her own.
But more than caution... there was a hint of exhilaration.
The darkness within Raynare seemed to crave devouring this person.
"A fallen angel? Why are there so many of them in this town? First it was devils hunting fallen angels, and now another one shows up? Are the devils and fallen angels at war in this town?"
The blonde girl rubbed her forehead and muttered a guess.
The moment she laid eyes on Raynare, the environment began to change.
People around them started to vanish, and even Mittelt and Kalawarna felt a force trying to repel them. Fortunately, the power of their contract negated it.
This was a crowd-dispersing spell, something that existed in almost every world.
"Little fallen angel girl, tough luck meeting me. I'll do the city's administrators a favor and drive you out of here."
If it were the actual town administrators, she'd hesitate. After all, they were backed by a Maou, and she couldn't openly wage war with the Underworld just yet.
But the fallen angels? They were clearly sneaking into this town—this was devil territory, after all.
"A human? A Sacred Gear wielder?"
Raynare remained unfazed, looking at the girl like she was a fool.
This place wasn't far from her master's shop. Using a crowd disperser here would easily attract attention.
Fighting here? You're just asking to die.
But clearly, the other party didn't know how things worked in Kuoh Town.
"That's right, that's right! I'm Jeanne! I inherited the will and soul of Saint Jeanne d'Arc!"
A descendant of a hero? Raynare frowned slightly, though not particularly surprised.
There were plenty of hero descendants in this world—some even flaunted their ancestor's name.
Even though people like Cao Cao didn't really act like heroes...
If Ren were here, he'd probably want to visit the Fate world and invite those real heroes to expose the fakes.
As she spoke, Jeanne raised her sword and pointed it at Raynare, glancing at the two behind her.
"Misses, please step back. I don't know who you are, but you don't seem like fallen angels. I'm here to purify this evil fallen angel who snuck into town! That repulsive aura you're giving off is practically overflowing..."
Mittelt and Kalawarna exchanged glances. After having their bloodlines extracted, they could pass as non-fallen angels. Should they be glad?
Jeanne's sword emitted a faint glow, as if reacting to her disgust.
As she'd said, she'd only been searching the area when she suddenly sensed an unpleasant aura.
Her Sacred Gear was Blade Blacksmith. Though her mass-produced swords were similar to Kiba's demonic ones, they still rejected pure darkness—like what Raynare carried.
Even if mass-produced, they were still holy swords...
So she followed the aura—and found a fallen angel.
Without any care for the two behind her, Raynare's fallen angel wings unfurled. But instead of using light power, she tapped into her pure darkness, a twisted smile once again appearing on her face.
She had awakened certain... unique interests recently.
For instance, just like now, her power whispered to her:
Corrupt this human...
The fall of a saint—wasn't that interesting?