The next day...
Rayan and Jeanne gathered their things and stood at the door.
Isabella looked at them with complexity in her eyes.
"Ah... How quickly they have grown up... Already about to find their own way... I'm definitely going to miss them." - She thought wistfully as she looked at the two young men in front of her.
She remembered the still very young Rayan coming to their home. She remembered how protective and caring he had been for Jeanne.
Taking a deep breath and calming her feelings, she turned to Rayan. "Please, Rayan, take care of her. My daughter's fate will now be in your hands." - Hugging him tightly, she said hopefully.
A thin stream of tears flowed from her violet eyes. Her mind tried to suppress these feelings, but she loved them both too much.
Rayan, who had been surprised by such harsh expressions of emotion, was taken aback, but immediately hugged her back, trying to comfort her.
Jeanne watched the scene unfolding before her with difficulty in her eyes....
Isabella let go of Rayan and wiped away her tears.
Turning to Jeanne, she smiled slightly as she hugged her favorite daughter. "Jeanne, take care of Rayan. He's always been a unique boy and he sometimes lacked common sense, and you will be the one to set him on the right path."
At her words Jeanne nodded and determination shone in her eyes.
Isabella released Jeanne from her embrace. "I wish you luck on your journey. May you become each other's support, building a prosperous future." - she said.
Jeanne and Rayanne only smiled. "Thank you, Isabella/Mom."
"Please go, I can't take much more if you don't leave now." - Isabella said demurely.
They both immediately left the house, grabbing their own things.
Rayan was now wearing the classic light and thin leather armor. Around his waist hung the "Burning Hope".
Jeanne, on the other hand, wore a light and simple looking spear. It had an elaborate wooden shaft and a sharp tip that could seemingly pierce anything.
Rayan had not accustomed Jeanne to one particular weapon, for adaptation required any method of fighting.
However, he did not say that out loud. Instead, he offered Jeanne one of the weapons, of which she chose the spear.
In order to get the spear Rayan had to do a couple of quests.
And that's when the long-standing "Terrain Map" reward came in handy for him, for they specifically didn't know where Robert de Baudricourt resided.
"We need to head west of here. About 11 kilometers from here..." - Rayan said.
Jeanne nodded. "But where will we get a wagon?" - she asked doubtfully.
"There is a good acquaintance not far from here who for a few stacks of coins is ready to take us where we need to go." - Rayan said.
The two of them finally reached a wagon with a man waiting boredly for visitors.
Seeing a familiar boy, the wagon owner's mood instantly increased. This boy was one of the only ones who would let him pay all his bills.....
"Hello, Mousieur Runier. We need to go west of here, eleven kilometers, can you make it?" - Rayan asked with a slight challenge.
At his words, Runier only laughed. "My faithful horses have been through more than that. Come on in..." - Not noticing the girl beside him, he gave a slightly surprised sigh. "Who is this girl? I haven't seen her here before."
"Uh... This is my friend, Jeanne D'arc. Meet Jeanne, this is Runier, the owner of the wagon and a good acquaintance of mine." - With awkwardness in his voice he said. He had forgotten to tell Rougnier about Jeanne.
Jeanne only smiled. "Hello, Monsieur Runier. Just like Rayan said, I am his friend. We are going to see the captain of the city, Rober de Baudricourt."
Runier nodded at her words. "It is a pleasure to meet you. Sit down, let's not stall for time."
Jeanne and Rayan got into the wagon and it immediately began to rush at full speed towards the location Rayan had indicated...
When they reached their destination, Rayan paid Runier and they got out of the wagon.
A rather large building met them at the location. Its style was medieval. A couple stories high and unremarkable looking.
"I believe this is the place we are looking for." - Rayan said.
The two of them entered the building and were greeted by a woman, probably working here. "Hello, monsieur and mademoiselle. You are at the residence of master Baudricourt. Did you want something?" - With respect in her voice she said.
"Greetings, mademoiselle. My name is Ryan. I need to meet with Monsieur Baudricourt. I have an important dialog with him." - Rayan said calmly with an expression of politeness.
The woman in front of him looked slightly surprised. "In order to meet Monsieur Baudricourt, you need his personal invitation."
Suddenly, Rayan leaned in front of her, causing the woman in front of him to blush slightly. "Let's finish this quickly, Mademoiselle..." - he whispered, carefully and discreetly holding out a sack of coins into her hand.
The woman took the sack and coughed awkwardly. "Good, I don't think Monsieur Baudricourt would mind meeting a couple of people."
Rayan was frankly too lazy to come up with a million kinds of manipulations to get what he wanted.
Assuming the plot of the story, Jeanne met Baudricourt quite by accident. Here it turned out to be a little more complicated.....
However, if you think back to the century they live in, things become much simpler.
People in this era were overwhelmingly poor. Peasants were making ends meet, all for mere pennies.
The woman in front of him was just as low status, and a couple dozen silver coins and she would fulfill your every request.
If anyone had a question as to where Rayan got his money from, the answer was selling.
Rayan would kill animals and skin and flesh them, selling them quickly in the market. In this way he earned a decent amount of money, so that he could not deny himself anything.
Jeanne didn't notice how quickly he handed the bag of money to the woman, but she couldn't help but pout at how close he was to the woman....
Some kind of feeling awakened in her heart.... She didn't know what it was.
Most likely the secret lay in the fact that she had never seen Rayan interact with any other member of the fairer sex....
The woman led them into an office. "This is Master Baudricourt's office. Please come in." - Leaning over to Rayan, she whispered with gratitude in her voice. "You have been incredibly helpful to me, Monsieur Rayan..." - At her words, Rayan only nodded weakly, not feeling particularly proud of what he had done.
Not that he didn't care, rather it looked insignificant in his eyes. Like when you give someone a drink of water, don't you care when you do it?
After opening the door, a middle-aged man sitting on a chair and writing with a quill on paper appeared before Rayan and Jeanne. His long black hair was coming down from his head. It was slightly disheveled. The deep black eyes reflected sternness and severity.
He stopped writing on the paper and looked at them piercingly. "Who are you?" - A single question escaped his lips. His voice was deep enough to be listened to carefully.
However, Rayan didn't care. "Greetings, Mousier Baudricourt. My name is Ryan. Me and my companion have been brought here for one purpose."
Rober only raised an eyebrow. "And what purpose is that, Monsieur Rayan?" - with a grin and slight curiosity crept into his voice.
"We need men's clothing and armor." - Rober expected anything. Power, money, an assignment... But not clothes.
He was slightly at a loss for words, but experience quickly brought him back to his senses. "Good. I am willing to provide you with the item you need, however, I will not give it for free. I need to see if you are worthy of it." - Rober said defiantly, looking into Rayan's sapphire eyes.
In ancient France, men's armor and clothing were objects of high value. Serving in the French army of those times was considered an incredible honor.
It was impossible to obtain detailed equipment so easily.
"However, it's not me who will fight you, but my companion." - he said with a laugh.
To his seemingly jest, Rober reacted in his own way. "You dare look down on me?" - Raising an eyebrow, he said with quiet anger in his voice.
Jeanne immediately stood in front of Rayan. "I wish to duel with you, Monsieur Baudricourt. I am Jeanne D'arc, bound to save France from the hands of the English!" - she exclaimed, drawing out her lance.
Suddenly, Rober lowered his gaze. His figure began to twitch.....
"Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!... How funny, a woman wanting to lead an army?" - said Rober with a hearty laugh, in spite of his serious appearance.
For France of this era, a howling woman is something unthinkable, what to speak of leading an entire army....
"Instead of scratching your tongue, have a fair duel amongst yourselves." - Rayan intervened. He was tired of watching this boring scene as he knew how it would end.
Jeanne and Rober fell silent and nodded. Both took their own weapons and went out into the special courtyard designated for duels.
Once outside, Rayan stood in the middle between them. "I will be the judge of this duel. The rules are simple: Killing or wounding is forbidden. Victory is only considered if the opponent has surrendered, or is unable to continue. You will fight on swords without a sharp edge." - At his words, Rober and Jeanne nodded, taking their swords nearby.
"The duel begins... Now!" - exclaimed Rayan, stepping back abruptly.
Jeanne scrutinized the opponent in front of her. This was her first real fight with a human, excluding Rayan.
Many of Rayan's teachings popped up in her mind, from the simplest to the most complex.
But the most important and basic rule was concentration.
Taking a deep breath, she tensed her body. Her mind scrolled through the various methods by which she could immobilize Baudricourt.
Rober didn't wait for her actions and resolutely launched an attack with a straight and sharp sword strike.
However, his actions had no effect, Jeanne instantly parried his blow, attempting to strike back by probing Baudricourt.
"Damn... Why are her punches so strong...?.. I mean, she's just a simple woman... Something's not right here." - Rober thought with slight doubt as he dodged and parried her blows. He had to brace himself to react to her blows.
He was also horrified by the fact that after a while she began to dodge his blows with incredible ease, as if it were nothing....
Rayan was watching this battle, including Jeanne. "This is quite easy victory for Jeanne.... She's quickly getting used to Rober's speed and thinking. Soon it will be over for Rober. If Jeanne gets used to Rober's speed and pace, it will be enough for her to poke his weaknesses with her sword..."
As much as he thought his style was boring, it was too effective. He wasn't interested in a beautiful and destructive battle. He only wanted the defeat or death of his opponent, nothing more.
Rayan had taught Jeanne the same thing. He swore inwardly that he would teach those who would be very close to him, for his style was dangerous enough in the wrong hands.
Not fifteen minutes later, Jeanne defeated Rober with absolute dominance.
Robert himself felt pain all over his body, although there were no visible injuries on the body itself... "I lost to a woman...?" - He thought with a blank stare as he looked up at the sky.
To a middle-aged man like him, a woman was nothing more than an object of reproduction and the stronghold of a family. Seeing a woman as something like a warrior was an impossible thing for him.
Jeanne was slightly out of breath. Small drops of sweat dripped from her seductive body. Even though she could fight, her feminine body did not allow her to stay in such conditions of full concentration for a long time.
Rayan couldn't break her limit with normal training. More than just training was required....
"I've won." - She said with a tired sigh, but with a satisfied smile.
Rayan immediately walked over to Jeanne.
Not noticing the damage on her body, he breathed a sigh of relief. "You did great, Jeanne. Way to go." - Rayan said with a smile.
Jeanne blushed and nodded silently at his words.
Rober stood up and shook himself off, stretching slightly to ease the pain. "I don't know how you beat me, but..." - he sighed. "A victory is a victory. I stick to my own honor first. Follow me, Monsieur and Mademoiselle."
Reaching the warehouse, Rober provided them with two sets of clothes.
Both took one each. Jeanne, oddly enough, took the exact one she had in the Fate/Apocrypha canon.
Rayan looked at his armor and changed his mind about taking it with him, as it was too bulky and restrained his movements.
"You can stay here until you decide to go further. In case you need anything, call the maids at my residence." - With a weary sigh, Rober turned his back on them and headed for his own chambers. This duel was tiring him too much....
Rayan and Jeanne only nodded silently. They should rest for a couple days in order to recover and go on... To the Dauphin of France.
The Dauphin was considered the heir to the throne and it was up to him to decide whether he would become king or not.
Looking out into the evening, Rayan sighed. "I will go to my room. I need to rest." - He said tiredly.
Though Rayan was part dragon, mental fatigue caught up with him just as it did with humans.
Jeanne nodded. "Then I should rest as well. The duel has tired me out..." - she felt a slight emptiness in her heart as she imagined that she was sleeping not in her home, but in a foreign residence and in a foreign place...
She didn't usually stray far from home. Most of her time is spent helping her own mom, studying books or playing with Rayan.
"Thank God that Rayan came along with me.... I hope I won't be a burden to him in this difficult journey." - Crossing her arms in a prayerful gesture, she whispered sincerely.
She hadn't originally wanted him to come with her. It was her destiny and it was not for him to experience her hardships....
However, for some reason this stubborn boy didn't even listen to her opinion and firmly said that he would go with her.
On the one hand, this made her very happy, but on the other.... She didn't want him to get hurt. He was too precious to her for her to lose him so easily....
At the mere thought of him dying... Her heart broke with pain and sadness....
It was with these thoughts that she found herself here, outside Rayan's room.
She didn't know why she wanted to be with Rayan so much. Perhaps she sought his presence to calm her own confusion?
Rayan, who wanted an easy dinner, had not expected to meet Jeanne in front of his door. "What's wrong, Jeanne?" - He asked curiously.
At this question Jeanne froze like a statue. Her face was covered by her hair and it was impossible to read her expression, but her slightly flushed ears showed that she was definitely not calm.
"I-I..." - Her voice trailed off. She really didn't know what to say. She always listened to the call of her heart. And so, her heart led her here, to Rayan's room.
"I want to sleep with you." - Looking at him with a flushed expression on her face, she said innocently.
Rayan looked calm, but....
"That's so cute...! Damn... How can you say that so innocently!" - he thought, looking at the confused and determined expression on Jeanne's face.
However, he quickly replied. "Of course. I don't mind at all. After all, we used to do that when we were kids too, right?"
"U-uh... Yes..." - Jeanne muttered this as she entered his room and lay down on the bed.
Her hands subconsciously squeezed Rayan's pillow. His body odor traveled through her nostrils, making the girl feel a whole new, uncharted spectrum of sensations.
"Why do I feel warmth in my heart when I smell this odor...?" - With complex emotions in her heart, she muttered quietly.
It was completely normal for Jeanne to experience such feelings.
In this era, sex education was completely primitive. The legends of babies being born thanks to the stork were still valid.
However, this tangle of emotions should soon unravel....
Rayan changed his mind about going out for dinner and decided to sleep because.... Well... He couldn't let such a moment pass, could he?
Slowly lying down on the bed and lightly cuddling Jeanne, he sighed.
He could smell the scent of fresh lavender, partly reflecting Jeanne's very essence. She was so beautiful, so simple, and so lovely...
"Ah... I'm drowning in these sensations." - he thought blissfully, not noticing by how many tones Jeanne's redness was increasing.
After Jeanne and Rayan turned 14, Isabella had forbidden them to sleep together, citing that it was dangerous.
However, she did not explain what exactly this "danger" was.....
Both of them, immersed in their own feelings, did not notice how they fell into a deep and warm sleep, wrapped in each other's arms.....