EP 7 [The Grand Duke's Second Daughter Jeanne d'Arc is a Crazy Woman]

EP 7 [The Grand Duke's Second Daughter Jeanne d'Arc is a Crazy Woman]

'What was bound to happen has come.' 

When Jeanne dragged me out to the moonlit garden of the Orléans mansion, 

I was honestly quite bewildered. 

However, the moment I saw her finally draw her sword and point it at me, 

My expression rather became slightly nonchalant. 

Jeanne's declaration to check my abilities, 

Though the situation I expected to happen someday came sooner than I thought, 

It was a nonchalance born from being prepared for this scene anyway. 

"Have you heard? They say our eldest young lady will become an awakener with the potential to become a saint!" 

About a year after I came to the Orléans family, 

A joyous event occurred in the Orléans family. 

When Charlotte turned 13 and was tested for mana awakening, 

The results showed that her mana awakening was a foregone conclusion and her breakthrough point was at the level of a saint, the highest peak for priestesses. 

So even Uncle Grand Duke Antoine, who usually showed a knife-like demeanor in ability evaluations, 

Couldn't hide his joy. 

Naturally, the butler uncles and maid aunties also rejoiced as if it were their own affair and savored it daily. 

"I heard too, Himena. Charlotte was certainly different from a young age. Even wild animals would become docile around her, you know? Crying babies would smile brightly when Charlotte was with them. From what I know, those are all precursor symptoms of individuals compatible with divine power." 

"That's right! I remember too. And that's not all, is it? Charlotte's character was truly incomparable from the start. Looking at the young lady's smile felt like receiving a blessing." 

For a while, Charlotte's past actions were mentioned one by one, 

And praise continued as if a biography of a great person was being written. 

In my case, before coming to the Orléans family, 

I only thought of Charlotte as just a very pretty noble young lady. 

But after experiencing her directly for a year, 

I fully understood the words of the maid aunties chattering below the window of my room on the 3rd floor. 

There were truly many psycho noble young ladies with terrible personalities in the Pedon continent. 

Although unpleasant, it was considered to that extent to be a virtue of noble young ladies. 

But the genius Grand Duke's daughter Charlotte, with an angelic character opposite to that, 

It's not strange at all that such pride wells up in those serving such a young lady. 

Yet, despite this meaningful and pleasant family celebration, 

I'm watching while moderately managing my expression. 

"..." 

Because Jeanne's expression, who is listening to the maid aunties' conversation below the window with me, has become quite dejected. 

Although Jeanne appeared outwardly lively and carefree, 

For a long time, she had no small amount of inferiority complex inside. 

Her character was unique, but in terms of ability, she wasn't so much. 

Of course, by commoner standards, Jeanne d'Arc de Sel Orléans, the second daughter of the Orléans Grand Duke family, is extremely extraordinary. 

Becoming an awakener was a foregone conclusion, after all. 

However, that's only when compared to commoners, 

Among nobles, her talent was only slightly higher than average, at an upper-middle level. 

"My goodness, Elizabeth, can you read this ancient document too?" 

"It's easy." 

From what I've experienced and understood of Jeanne's tendencies, 

She honestly wasn't the type with such a strong ego as to be jealous or envious of others unnecessarily. 

But when light is too strong, shadows inevitably form, 

The other two young ladies in her family were just too much of geniuses. 

As mentioned earlier, Charlotte had talent as a priestess 

Comparable to historical figures, 

And in Elizabeth's case, 

She was already reading books and writing in the house at the age of three without anyone teaching her. 

"Grand Duke, although Elizabeth is still very young, I think we should assign her a private tutor. The depth of her intellectual curiosity is beyond imagination. She's always immersed in books like that. I think she needs to learn how to communicate and explore through a teacher." 

"I've had the same thought. But since she still has a lot of time left to go through changes, I think it's better to watch a bit longer." 

With two such daughters born, 

Even if they tried to pay equal attention, Charlotte and Elizabeth inevitably required more care. 

If Jeanne had been the youngest, she might have received the youngest child buff, 

But unfortunately, as the second daughter stuck in the middle, 

Jeanne's sense of alienation grew vigorously, contrary to the Grand Duchess and Grand Duke's intentions. 

"Tch... I love Mom, Dad, my little sister, and big sister too... but I feel bad for becoming someone who's needlessly jealous and resentful..." 

Jeanne, listening to the maid aunties' murmurs, 

Muttered with slightly reddened eyes and a pouting mouth. 

Love for family, 

But realistically, an inferiority complex etched in her heart, 

Wanting to shake off this contradiction, Jeanne struggled in various ways. 

"I may be a year younger, but I'm clearly your older sister. So now that you've come to our house, I'll take care of you." 

It was then that Jeanne, going through such a childhood, 

And I suddenly became connected. 

I still remember. 

After the formal family introductions were over, 

Jeanne coming to my room separately in the evening, acting proudly as an older sister, 

At that time, I honestly thought, "What's up with this girl?" 

But now, knowing the inside story quite well, I even feel a deep sense of pity. 

"Ha! Idiot, can't you do even this alone? What would you do without me? You do it like this, like this. How's that, grateful? Isn't it reassuring to have an older sister?" 

"Um... I never asked for help though..." 

"Sh-Shut up!" 

Apart from my puzzled stance when I was young, 

I unintentionally filled Jeanne's space of inferiority complex quite admirably. 

To put it bluntly, in Jeanne's eyes, I was a lacking fellow, 

Even inferior to herself. 

Despite being only a year apart, as a boy, I was clearly shorter than Jeanne, as well as scrawny, and even my appearance was too delicate. 

Not only that, 

I was so weak that I fell ill with every change of season. 

Therefore, when in front of me, Jeanne 

Always felt her own specialness and excellence 

She released that sense of superiority by taking on the position of a nurturing older sister towards me, erasing her childhood wounds. 

In the midst of this, a situation that marked the peak of this relationship dynamic was created 

"Just because a noble can't awaken doesn't mean it's the end of the world. You have me, Jeanne d'Arc de Sel Orléans, second daughter of the Orléans Grand Duke family, the Empire's number one noble family." 

The reality was that my awakening possibility turned out to be a mere 0.1 percent. 

After that, Jeanne showed a tendency to talk more about the future 

Beyond just doing things for me right now. 

She probably thought like this. 

Charlotte and Elizabeth are super-human talents who will lead the empire, so they will eventually go their own independent ways, 

Grand Duke Antoine and Grand Duchess Marianne are already highly capable awakeners, 

So even in their old age, they won't particularly need someone to take care of them. 

But in the case of me, Eugene Schneider, who can't even awaken despite being a noble, 

And moreover, not a biological child but an adopted one, it's different. 

Without someone to guide me like a sunflower, 

I probably wouldn't be able to function properly as a person. 

In other words, Jeanne wanted to become my sunflower herself, 

Wanting to care for me as if I were an inseparable existence by her side for life. 

But that guy who seemed like he couldn't do anything at all 

'I ended up awakening...' 

I awakened. 

'Jeanne must have been immersed in all kinds of happiness creating and nurturing a mercenary group, thinking we'd live the mercenary life together for two years, and she probably wanted to proudly proclaim herself as my older sister and show off the results, like on my first night when I came to the Orléans main house as a child. That's why she made Uncle Hans and Sister Charlotte keep quiet. And that's probably why she got so excited for no reason and barged into my shower room earlier today.' 

I remember Jeanne's expressionless face 

Staring only at her steak while we ate lunch together. 

The feeling that two years of hard work had gone to waste was basic, 

And the roadmap she had made with a lifetime as the expiration date also disappeared like a bubble. 

It must have been Jeanne forcibly suppressing her unsettled mental state because of that. 

'But just because I awakened, it doesn't mean the possibility of Jeanne's dream coming true is completely closed off.' 

After pondering like that, Jeanne seems to have 

Recalled a course of action that I had anticipated and prepared for, while spacing out after the meal. 

And it looks like she intends to make it clear now. 

'If my awakening ability is shabby, I'll have no choice but to act with Jeanne, who's the only one among the young ladies walking the path of the sword.' 

Not all awakening abilities are the same. 

Some people remain at a very basic level of awakening ability for life 

While others reach the pinnacle of their field. 

Of course, if you awaken, you can at least work as a decent level administrative official 

In various high-ranking institutions of the empire. 

However, I've already declared to Sister Charlotte that I'll walk the path of the sword, 

If you don't have talent on that path, what you rely on is influence and connections. 

Jeanne wants to directly confirm through her sword whether I'm an awakener who doesn't need her influence and connections, 

Or a person who needs her guidance and support. 

"Is the sword too heavy for you to even point at me? You were so cocky towards me with your body grown like a barbarian. Seems you just picked up the greatsword full of bluster." 

As expected, Jeanne was showing her true colors. 

In fact, it's admirable that she's maintained a calm expression until now. 

Jeanne is not the type to hide her inner feelings well. 

You could say her personality is like a blank white canvas, revealing whatever is drawn on it as is. 

In other words, what she's saying now is not psychological provocation before a duel. 

She really felt that way earlier and was disappointed. 

Although it was just my back view, 

Jeanne was overwhelmed by my muscular nude backside that had become huge, 

And to put it bluntly, that overwhelmed state of hers must have been miserable. 

It must have been Jeanne's heart at that time, with inferiority complex gushing out that she had experienced among her genius sisters from childhood, which she thought she had filled to some extent. 

'Coward.' 

Outwardly strong but inwardly weak, 

Jeanne d'Arc de Sel Orléans appears fearless on the outside. 

From a young age, she had no hesitation in catching lizards and insects with her bare hands. 

She also boldly confronted injustice. 

But when it comes to revealing her true feelings as they are, she's always like this. 

She could just honestly open up and talk, 

But fearing her heart being exposed, she unnecessarily acts as if there's no need to openly talk about her true feelings, 

She struggled like that trying to make the other person clearly dependent on her. 

"I may not know anything about the Orléans family's secret techniques except for the mana method. But I've been working hard on strength training since my body started changing." 

Thud...! 

I readjusted my grip on the greatsword's hilt with my right hand. 

If it were the old me, I might have said there's no need to bother fighting 

And that I was going to ask for help anyway. 

But I'm different now, having remembered my past life, 

Awakened, 

And received resonance at the Dragon-slaying Demon Race Great Swordsman's sacred site. 

"I've come to the conclusion that I can swing the greatsword sufficiently. Like this." 

Swoosh...!! 

I want to swing the sword. 

And if Jeanne is my first opponent, it seems quite meaningful and good. 

I got hit a lot by Jeanne when we sparred with wooden swords for fun as children. 

So I, Great Swordsman Eugene Schneider, 

Pointed the heavy blade of my greatsword at Jeanne d'Arc de Sel Orléans, swordswoman and leader of a new mercenary group. 

"Your stance is not bad. You were never the type to do things halfheartedly even from childhood, were you." 

Smirk...! 

Seeing my somewhat stable lower body stance, Jeanne raised the corners of her mouth with a subtle feeling, 

Seemingly thinking it was decent for someone wielding a sword. 

Then 

"Let me educate you. Try to receive this sister's sword, you little brother who's only grown in body." 

Whooooosh!!! 

She started an explosive dash with her sword slightly lowered.