My God is with Me III

...Wake uuup! Wake up, wake up, wake up pup pup pup!

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Wake up, or you'll start to hear my shrillest laugh in surround sooound!

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Theeere you are. Wakey wakey, eggs and bakey! It's me, Mephistopheles!

What an unexpected, but delightful, surprise to find you here!

May I ask what brings you out this way, Master?

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No, no, no, nonono! We are long since past that! Yes! Long since past!

Sadly, our present situation is sliiightly less than ideal for sleepyheads!

Why is that, your pleading eyes ask? The answer is simple.

Because the way things are going, the world will soon be destroyed!

...All right, let's go over this world.

As I'm sure you've already guessed, this is a non-dream dream. You know, that old saw.

There's no getting in touch with Chaldea here. We may as well be cut off from the entire timeline.

The only place this world connects to is itself.

I believe it belongs to Jeanne d'Arc.

And your task here is to destroy it.

Ooh, harsh! Well, you know, I have my own reasons for being here.

Maybe I'm here because, of all the Servants in Chaldea, I'm the closest there is to everyone's image of the Devil?

Oh, and I also have my own connection to that Ruler, as you know.

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Now, on that note, let's be on our way! The final battlefield awaits!

Oh, I do beg your pardon.

Final battle or no, even I must admit that showing up dressed like the Devil would be in poor taste!

So, without further ado...!

What do you think? Now I look just like any other soldier!

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Of course, it might be easier to just cast a perception inhibitor spell and be done with it, but this way is more fun.

Now then, you there, soldier. It sounds like the whole town is abuzz. Pray tell, what might be going on?

Oh, they're about to hold an execution.

An execution, you say?

Aye, they say Jeanne d'Arc finally confessed to heresy.

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My, my, whatever are we going to do now?

Historically, this is where she is meant to be burned at the stake.

Even if, hypothetically speaking, we were to Rayshift in and save her at the last second...

...the end result would almost certainly be the same.

Whether Jeanne is burned at the stake, or ends up dying of old age...

...her role in history has come to an end, and I doubt it would have any other effect.

If she succeeded at avoiding the stake and tried to stand on history's stage once more, I imagine there would be secret efforts made to...you know.

Indeed. I imagine Charles VII, or perhaps someone else, would betray her, and she would meet a bloody end nonetheless.

Indeed. I'm guessing she would be betrayed again, and end up getting murdered anyway.

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Aaanyway, none of that matters in this world!

There may be nothing to stop us from leaving her to her fate, but there is nothing stopping us from saving her, either!

It's Jeanne d'Arc! It's the witch!

Poor thing. I don't see why they have to execute her.

Hey, they say she's a witch.

Forget the cross! Give her a good stoning!

Is God going to punish all of us for this? Or just the priests carrying it out?

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Indeed, she is. Or isn't, rather.

That's neither Jeanne the Rogue Servant, nor the actual Jeanne from history.

That's Jeanne d'Arc...the Ruler.

Which perhaps means that if she's burned at the stake now, she may just cease to be your Servant.

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Order! We will now carry out the sentence of execution on Jeanne d'Arc!

This girl claimed she was a saint! She claimed that she heard the voice of God! She defied the Church!

She had no compunctions about engaging in the worst kind of heresy. She is beyond redemption!

My, oh my. This is true of all these sorts of witch trials, of course...

...but I do so enjoy this gloomy atmosphere!

Hm? Why are you looking at me like that? Do you think I'm not normal or something?

Oh...

Hohoho, you know me so well! No wonder you've been able to keep me on as a Servant!

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Do you have anything to say for yourself, Jeanne d'Arc?

... ...

...It would appear you do not. Very well, light the fire!

...So, what are you going to do now, Master?

Ahh, just as I thought! In that case, I think I'll join you!

Oho. So your going to save her is a foregone conclusion, and the only question is whether I will be joining you, hm?

Of course I will!

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But first, another change of clothes...

Ah tah ta tah♪ Let's go do this thiiing♪

Hm? You there, who are you!? Soldiers, stop them!

Annnd switch!

Y-yeowch!? That's hot!

What the hell was that!? That man... Don't tell me he's...

The Devil!?

Settle down! Settle down! Soldiers, kill that jester!

Nobody's killing meee!

Ah... You...!?

Khh...! Never mind that! Just light the cursed fire!

So what if the Devil has come to save the witch!? Kill them both and be done with it!

...Please, stop this. Don't...!

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I mean it! This is wrong...!

I...I'm supposed to...

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Master...!

...I...

...You wished for it, didn't you, Jeanne?

Huh...?

You said it, you said it, you said it! We heard you, we heard you, we heard you!

You did all hear that, didn't you everyone? He said it plain as day, didn't he?

Fujimaru said he was going to save Jeanne d'Arc! And what's more...she herself asked to be saved!

That's right, Jeanne d'Arc has wished to be saved! Now, Jeanne. Darkness has awoken within you!

That's enough of the jester act! It's time to show who I really am.

What the...!? You're...!

My, my, oh my, my, my. What can the humble prosecutor Mephistopheles do for you?

What the? Another one of me? You know, I could swear something like this happened before.

...This must be the next part of that dream... And that must mean you're here.

Figured it out, did you? Well, I guess it was getting kind of obvious by this point.

A version of me dressed in black...! But I thought you disappeared after the Holy Grail was collected!?

...It did. Since I was the Holy Grail, I was fated to disappear once it was collected.

But it turns out that the Holy Grail was nothing more than my source of magical energy. I exist because that's what Gilles wished for.

Even after the Grail was recovered and that time period repaired, his wish remained.

Nor did the wish itself ever disappear. In which case, why wouldn't I still exist?

That said, I'd lost almost all of my power. If I'd been left to my own devices, I would have disappeared...

But then...you stopped me, Jeanne.

You acknowledged my existence without even realizing the truth.

You discovered your own dark side...one that was never meant to exist in the first place.

But...I...

That's right. You didn't accept me. You said I couldn't possibly exist.

...And you were right. But I still had something to say about it.

I exist!

Whatever the circumstances of my creation, I was still created!

...But even though I could advocate for my own existence, there was only so much else I could do.

Namely, create a small world, summon Mephistopheles, and poke whatever darkness you had inside.

...Sure, my last two attempts might have ended in failure.

But this stake...that was immutable.

This was the place where Jeanne d'Arc's dreams came to an end.

Even if Jeanne herself had given up and decided to offer herself to the Lord...introducing a third party changes things considerably.

Especially one who wishes for nothing more than to save her, and is willing to act on that wish.

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Now do you get it? That's right! I'm talking about you, Fujimaru!

You've gone and proven that Jeanne d'Arc did have a secret desire to escape her fate!

In her very last moments, she saw hope in you.

And so she wanted to be saved! She wished for it! Desperately!

But she thought that wish was wrong, was evidence of her own dark side!

Once she decided to abandon what was right and cling to her own life, that was the moment I took root inside her!

My, my, you don't say. Is that true, other me?

Oh yes, quite true. Hmm, it's rather difficult to tell us apart, isn't it? Let me give myself another name.

I'll be Mephistopheles with "(Enemy)" after my name.

Jeanne d'Arc's other half summoned me here.

Of course, just about everyone wants to stay alive, and there's really nothing wrong with that.

But for her and me...that wasn't true.

Right, Jeanne?

Ghh...!

I was careless... I never expected to be forced to acknowledge her like this...!

...Yes. But, it looks like...I really did end up acknowledging her.

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But we can talk later. Right now, we need to stall her!

This is it, Mephistopheles! The final showdown!

Indeed, indeed. Everyone, I would just like you to know that I'm truly sorry about this. ...Release!

Khh...!

My, my. What shall we do now, Master?

I really must say that I think retreat remains an eminently viable option.

...Good point. I suppose I am in your debt.

If you want to wake up now, that's fine with me. Do that, and I'll let you go.

It'll be just like you never had a Ruler at all.

That'll take care of everything.

But...if you're planning on defeating me, not that you could...

...Well, at that point you saving my life won't matter. You'll get no mercy from me.

I'd get out of here if I were you. Go on, other me, persuade them!

Good point. All right, here's my attempt at persuasion.

Master, I'd get out of here if I were you.

That shock alone has already transferred over half of Jeanne's power to her Alter.

Even if I joined you two, we'd all be hopelessly outmatched!

You do remember what your obligations are as the Master destined to save humanity, don't you?

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...Then what's your answer?

I had a feeling you were going to say that!

I knew it!

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Oh, my, what happened, other me? That wasn't very persuasive at all.

Of course not!

If you think this is enough to stop him, you don't know Chaldea's Master at all!

Wooo! That. Was. Awesooome! I just wanted to say that, naturally!

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?

Master, are you sure about this?

I'm at less than half my full power right now. We may both be Rulers, but she has the upper hand.

I'd bet the two Mephistopheles are evenly matched, too. There's no way we can win.

Even knowing all that, are you sure you still want to fight?

...!

...!

...No, I didn't.

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That way of thinking isn't going to get you very far. But, then again, that might be why I was summoned in the first place.

Even if I am just a ghost who only happened to exist at one point...I think I can still help you.

So we're going to fight after all, are we? What a shame.

Indeed. I'm a pacifist, I'll have you know!

But, I guess that's okay!

After all, I'm Mephistopheles. I make fun of saints and demons alike!

You know it!

Okay, ghostly boys and girls, I hope you like playing with fire, 'cause the Dragon Witch is about to roast you alive!

...Everything else aside, having two of him around is extremely confusing!

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...Ugh, that clown is a real pain. Well, at least I can fight jester with jester.

Now, what are we going to do about these scattered memories of yours?

Specifically, this group of ordinary, decent folk whipped into a mob frenzy!

Look at the anger on their faces, just like monsters! Hmm... I think I'll go ahead and turn them into REAL monsters.

Well, Jeanne d'Arc? Think you can defeat me now!?

I don't know if I can defeat you, but my pennant is telling me I have to try.

Let's go, Master!

The Lord forgives all sin and wickedness. He rescues the lives that crawl forth from the grave, grieves for them, and takes mercy upon them...

My, my, how impressive! It looks like ghosts just aren't enough to put up a decent fight anymore!

In that case, how about this? Come on up, anonymous Servants!

Shadow Servants!

What, them? Those are just a few shadows that happened to be hanging around.

They're not even self-aware. Trust me, we have nothing to worry about!

Got you...!

My, my, so you did! Well, Master? What's the plan now?

...Don't tell me you're worried I might lose? You know they call me the Dragon Witch!

I wield disaster as a weapon. I was made to sow despair wherever I so much as breathe.

Oh no. Don't tell me...!

Wooo! That's amazing! I haven't felt my eyes almost pop out of their sockets like that in a long time!

Faf...nir...!

That's right! Fafnir, my adorable personal dragon. And this time...he's going to rid me of the righteous Holy Maiden once and for all.

...Even so, I am not going to lose!

It doesn't matter who you call to come fight on your behalf! We'll beat them all!

What, because of God's blessing?

In part. The Lord is always by my side...always helping, even if only a little.

But the other part is, of course, thanks to my friends and my Master.

They console me when I'm powerless to do something, and pick me up when I slump in defeat.

That's all the salvation I need.

I may not have been saved in history, but I know their desire to help me is genuine.

...I see you're as much of a teacher's pet as ever. God, you piss me off.

Fine, then. Let's settle this once and for all. We'll see who wins: me and my dragon, or you and your Master.

Let's have a nice pleasant duel to the death, Jeanne d'Arc!

Just what I had in mind. Come at me, Fafnir, Mephistopheles.

Come at me...my other self who fell from grace. The Alter I once so vehemently rejected!

Wonderful. Then this will truly be the final showdown! At last, her long and winding journey will come to an end!

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No...way...

Welp, looks like we lost...

But then again, I suppose there was only so far I could go as a jester. What a shame. Maybe we should invite someone more fun to join our little party.

Then again, maybe the Counter Force went easy on us, pitting me against you?

Not at all. If anything, I think it was a dreadfully cold-blooded decision. This Lord guy seems like a real sadist, if you ask me.

After all, if I hadn't been here, that woman you're with would never admit defeat.

The fact that you and I are equally matched means that she has only herself to blame if she loses.

Ohhh. Nooow I see!

Well, there you have it, Master. I'm so terribly sorry.

It may not have looked like it, but I really was doing my best out there, you know?

How...? It shouldn't have been possible for me to lose!

You lost your power! I was the one who took it!

I didn't defeat you alone. We did it together.

...Yes, I did end up creating you. But I didn't regret that at all.

Instead...I was happy. Happy to know I was actually the sort of person who wanted to live on more than anything.

Happy to know I was the sort of ordinary person who felt joy at seeing others come to her rescue.

So I was genuinely happy to see that Master didn't think twice about saving me.

I didn't fight as a Holy Maiden. I fought you as just another Servant, and I won. That's all there is to it.

That isn't about faith, however weak or strong it might be.

...What a disgrace. Guess this is really it for me.

Nothing I did worked out, right to the end...

...I don't know if I'd say that. I did acknowledge you as the darkness that exists inside me.

You're another side of my Heroic Spirit. You could end up getting registered as an Anti-Heroic Spirit.

Who knows? Maybe there will come a time when your power will be exactly what is necessary to save the day.

...Is that supposed to be a joke? I'd rather disappear forever than get dragged into something like that.

But if I have no choice, I hope I can at least change my class first.

I'm not cut out to be a Ruler.

...And that brings my story to a close. Master...thank you for everything. Sincerely.

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Yes, it may well be.

But isn't that how it is with friends and allies? I know I've made plenty of trouble for you.

Besides...it's like I said earlier.

This made me really happy.

I was so happy I got to see you running in to save me.

No other reward could possibly compare to that.

That goes for you too, Mephistopheles. I was so happy that you came to save me.

Reeeally? I'm not used to this sort of thing, so I'm not quite sure how to respond to that.

But, as long as you enjoyed yourself, that's all that matters. Even better if it made you smile!

Ahh, it really is fun being a Servant.

This little adventure truly was like a dream come true, so to speak! Well, see you later!

Haha, whatever you might be, devil or otherwise...there's nothing more beautiful, or more fun, than joining forces and fighting together.

All right, Master, what do you say we awaken from this dream?

Your journey to protect humanity is still far from over, after all...