“So, have you made up your mind?”
Seeing Jeanne D’Arc approach, her head bowed in sorrow, Yue Wu finally exhaled. He certainly didn’t want his sudden transmigration to cause the Saintess of the Knights of Orléans to simply vanish.
After all, in the game, Jeanne D’Arc was a crucial figure. She led her knight order to defend a peaceful corner of the European Continent.
Her outstanding performance during several invasions by foreign races made her too prominent within the Empire. This, in turn, led to her being framed by jealous individuals, ultimately causing her downfall.
She transformed from the Saintess of Light into the Dragon Witch, a transformation that also ushered in the game’s first major siege event by foreign races.
“Lord Yue Wu, I wish to become stronger! Please, teach me how I can become like you!”
Jeanne D’Arc lifted her head, her gaze firm as she looked at Yue Wu. She had witnessed his immense power during the previous battle.
She hoped to become a powerhouse like him, then execute her plan for revenge.
“Are you certain? If you intend to seek out that evil force and fight to the death, then I’m afraid I cannot agree to teach you.”
“However, I will at least safely escort you to a nearby town and entrust you to a family, allowing you to live out a peaceful, ordinary life.”
Yue Wu understood Jeanne D’Arc’s thoughts perfectly. He saw the flames of revenge burning in her eyes.
“But, but…”
Jeanne D’Arc seemed to have suffered an immense grievance, and tears streamed down her face, unstoppable.
“No more ‘buts.’ Live well. This is likely what your parents wished for most.”
“They wouldn’t want you to seek revenge; it’s not worth it.”
“And one more thing: the cycle of karma ensures that what is owed will eventually be repaid. Trust me.”
Yue Wu reached out and gently patted Jeanne D’Arc’s head.
“Alright, I should continue now.”
With that, Yue Wu tapped his magic staff lightly on the ground.
The colossal magic circle in the sky officially activated.
The magic of this array was neither a Holy Light Judgment nor an Ultimate Super Magic Sanction; it was merely a large-scale purification spell.
The reason for the misunderstanding was that Yue Wu had tampered with the magic circle while sitting upon it.
He had simply overlaid an unactivated Holy Light Judgment spell on top of the purification spell, thus misleading his opponents.
Furthermore, proclaiming it as a ‘super magic’ was merely a tactic to disrupt their thoughts.
This was a support-type magic Yue Wu had independently developed in the game. It was named ‘Feigning Open Repair while Secretly Crossing the Chencang Pass’ [TL Note: A Chinese idiom referring to an overt maneuver that distracts from a covert one].
To put it simply, it was a clever trick acknowledged by the system at the time. While not particularly practical in the game, it had found significant use after his transmigration.
“May the living strive onward, and the departed rest in peace. Rest in peace, oh departed, for the living shall endure.”
As Yue Wu’s simple words fell, the entire village was enveloped in holy light.
The scene was as if heaven itself was calling upon the departed. Streaks of white light drifted upwards, following the direction of the holy radiance.
“Father, Mother, I promise I will live well! I promise you!”
Jeanne D’Arc seemed to see her parents within the holy light. Tears immediately fell, but she swiftly wiped them away.
She bravely bid them a final farewell, raising her hand to wave.
“Alright, let’s rest in the village for the night.”
“Tomorrow, a kingdom affiliated with the Empire should send people to investigate. When they arrive, tell them the truth.”
“Then, we’ll go to the kingdom with them.”
After purifying the entire village of its evil aura, Yue Wu felt a wave of drowsiness. Being put through such an ordeal on his first day of transmigration was hardly ideal.
He was still unaccustomed to this world. Otherwise, given Yue Wu’s personality, he wouldn’t have just used a simple great hammer against the ancient dragon earlier; he would have employed much more advanced magic.
“Understood, Master.”
After the devastating village incident, Jeanne D’Arc seemed to have transformed into a different person.
She had changed in a way that made Yue Wu feel she now possessed a hint of the Saintess Jeanne D’Arc from the game.
All that was missing was her heroic spirit, gentleness, and magnanimity.
“Uh, no, no, no, my head hurts. Just call me Yue Wu.”
Yue Wu, already terribly sleepy, felt a headache coming on from Jeanne D’Arc’s “Master.”
He clutched his forehead and waved his hand, rejecting the title Jeanne D’Arc had given him.
“Understood, Master! I understand, Master!”
Jeanne D’Arc seemed to have firmly decided that Yue Wu was her master. She was absolutely certain about calling him Master Yue Wu.
“Hold on, how about you use a different address? Something like Brother Yue Wu?”
Yue Wu looked at Jeanne D’Arc with a pained expression. Jeanne D’Arc, in turn, looked at him very seriously.
As they stared at each other, the atmosphere grew unusually quiet.
“R-really? Is that alright?”
Jeanne D’Arc suddenly blushed. Seeing her expression, Yue Wu suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to find a hole and crawl into it.
This was absolutely mortifying.
“Whatever, whatever you want.”
Yue Wu gave up. Jeanne D’Arc could call him whatever she liked. After all, it wasn’t a loss for him, was it?
So, Yue Wu stopped paying attention to Jeanne D’Arc and walked towards the room.
“Brother.”
Jeanne D’Arc watched Yue Wu’s yawning back. The two words slipped out directly.
However, the very next moment after Jeanne D’Arc uttered the simple words “Brother,” Yue Wu abruptly froze.
“As you wish.”
It took Yue Wu a long moment to respond simply to Jeanne D’Arc.
“Mm, then good night, Brother.”
Jeanne D’Arc said this and then ran off. She left Yue Wu standing motionless by the room’s entrance for a long time.
“Perhaps we are similar in one respect.”
Yue Wu turned his head, glancing at the now empty hall behind him. He uttered a sentence whose meaning was unclear.
****
Sure enough, on the morning of the second day, a group claiming to be the Holy Church’s Knight Order from the Kingdom of Fashilan arrived at the village.
They found Jeanne D’Arc and Yue Wu, the sole survivors.
During the knights’ investigation, Jeanne D’Arc did not reveal Yue Wu’s identity as a mage. Instead, she claimed he was her elder brother.
Jeanne D’Arc didn’t know that Yue Wu wasn’t a mage; he was a priest.
Yue Wu cooperated by changing his hair to the same golden color as Jeanne D’Arc’s that morning.
With a small braid at the back of his head and a pair of vintage glasses, he exuded an air of refined gentleness.
After a long period of questioning and examination, Yue Wu and Jeanne D’Arc followed the Knight Order, embarking on the road to the Kingdom of Fashilan.
Today or tomorrow would mark the official beginning of Yue Wu’s new adventurous life in this new world.
And, of course, a new companion: Jeanne D’Arc, the future leader of the Knights of Orléans and a Saintess.
“Brother, you’re not from the European Continent, are you?”
“I’m from the great nation of Huaxia, in the East Asian region of the Asian Continent.”
“Then, do you miss your parents, Brother?”
“They are no longer with us.”
“Ah! I’m sorry.”
“It’s alright. Jeanne D’Arc, would you like to go to the Asian Continent?”
“Can I? I’d love to see it. I’ve only ever heard stories about the Asian Continent from Grandpa Village Chief.”
“Then I’ll take you in two years, but you’ll have to work hard until then, Jeanne D’Arc.”
Along the way, Jeanne D’Arc and Yue Wu chatted.
Under the knights’ protection, they successfully reached the border of the Kingdom of Fashilan by evening.
Although it took Yue Wu and Jeanne D’Arc a little time to enter the city, the overall process was smooth.
“I forgot, I transferred all my money out.”
After entering the city, Yue Wu clutched his chest. He looked as if he was about to vomit blood.
“I’m truly sorry, I’ll definitely repay you next time.”
As entering the city required an entrance fee, Yue Wu had completely forgotten that he had transferred all his in-game gold coins to his bank card before the game’s servers shut down.
Now he had no gold coins whatsoever, only a pile of materials and consumables.
“No, you don’t need to, Brother. You don’t have to repay me, because we are family.”
Jeanne D’Arc quickly shook her head, refusing his offer.
“Mm! I’ll work hard to earn money! I absolutely won’t let Jeanne D’Arc go hungry!”
Yue Wu cheered himself up. Even without money, he still had countless materials and consumables.
Selling even a few of them would be enough for them to live comfortably.
“Jeanne D’Arc, come with me to sell some things. Once we’re done, we’ll go eat a filling meal.”
“Mm, I’ll listen to Brother.”
Jeanne D’Arc was very obedient to Yue Wu and regarded him as her own elder brother. Conversely, Yue Wu also cared for Jeanne D’Arc as his own younger sister.
“Alright then, let’s go.”
After entering the city, Yue Wu changed his disguised hair color back. From his King’s Treasury, he took out a dark purple, spherical gem, about the size of his fist.
“What a beautiful gem.”
Jeanne D’Arc was captivated by the gem Yue Wu had produced. Women, after all, found beautiful things irresistible.
“Do you like it? It’s for you.”
Seeing Jeanne D’Arc’s fondness for the gem in his hand, Yue Wu unhesitatingly offered it to her.
“Ah! No, no, I don’t need it. It’s no use to me. Let’s sell it instead.”
While she liked it, this gem was meant to be sold for money. Jeanne D’Arc was well aware that Yue Wu had no money at all, not even a single copper coin. As for herself, she didn’t have much money either, with less than a hundred copper coins remaining.
“If you like it and want it, just tell me.”
Yue Wu couldn’t help but smile, seeing the reluctance in Jeanne D’Arc’s eyes.
After Yue Wu inquired about places to sell items, he led Jeanne D’Arc to a jewel store named ‘Fairy’s Home.’
The moment Yue Wu pushed open the door, the scene inside astonished Jeanne D’Arc, leaving her speechless. Indeed, Jeanne D’Arc had always lived in the village and rarely saw so many gems, especially such exquisitely flawless ones.
“Don’t worry, you’ll have plenty in the future.”
Yue Wu smiled, patting Jeanne D’Arc’s head to comfort her.
“Mm.”
Jeanne D’Arc nodded obediently.
“Is your boss in?”
Yue Wu approached the counter, tapping the surface as he asked.
“I am. May I ask if you are looking to buy or sell gems, honored guest?”
The shop owner was a young girl from the Feathered race. Seeing that Yue Wu’s attire was not that of an ordinary poor person, she treated him with great courtesy.
“I’m here to sell. Take a look at this.”
With that, Yue Wu took out the gem in his hand.
“This is!?”
The shop owner was startled to see the gem Yue Wu produced emitting a strong magical aura. She had rarely encountered gems with such potent magic, not even top-grade ones possessed such an aura.
The only possibility was that it was a supreme-grade gem.
“This is purple agate, a high-grade gem. You must be aware of its properties if it were to be inlaid into a weapon, shop owner.”
Yue Wu introduced the purple agate he had taken out.
“What! High-grade!?”
The shop owner was shocked by Yue Wu’s words. She had never imagined that this was merely a high-grade gem, not a supreme-grade one.
“How much will you offer, shop owner?”
Yue Wu didn’t want to waste time explaining further to the shop owner. He simply wanted to quickly exchange it for money to eat a meal, as he had just promised Jeanne D’Arc.
“How much are you hoping to sell it for, esteemed sir?”
The shop owner swallowed nervously. A high-grade gem like this would likely be priceless on the market, but for a gem almost on par with the supreme grade, it might be valuable but unavailable for purchase. Moreover, whether she could even afford it was a question. What if the other party made an exorbitant demand?
“Jeanne D’Arc, do you think this is acceptable? And shop owner, how about this price?”
Yue Wu looked at Jeanne D’Arc. Jeanne D’Arc looked back at him. After a brief discussion, Yue Wu held up five fingers to the shop owner.
‘Fifty thousand gold coins? Or five hundred thousand gold coins? Or even higher?’
The shop owner felt a sudden panic, momentarily indecisive.
“Esteemed guest, could you please wait a moment? I need to consult my master.”
The shop owner finally decided to consult her hidden master.
“Mm, fine! But please be quick, we have other things to do.”
Yue Wu took Jeanne D’Arc’s hand and walked to the waiting area to quietly wait.
“Master.”
After leaving the counter, the Feathered girl went backstage to report the matter.
“What is it, Alys?”
A young male Feathered, her master, looked up at the girl.
“It’s like this.”
The girl recounted the entire incident to the young man in detail.
“I understand, Alys. Proceed as planned for now. If that doesn’t work, add a little more. Try to build a good relationship with him.”
“Yes!”
Alys complied with the young man’s instructions and returned to the counter.
“Well? Can you meet the price? If it’s too much, then this amount will also do.”
Yue Wu, with a pained expression as if cutting off his own flesh, held up two fingers. Although purple agate was common in the game and not very expensive—a single piece was only forty gold coins, equivalent to forty yuan—he was still hesitant.
“Twenty thousand gold coins?!”
Alys accidentally blurted it out, unsure if it was the right or wrong thing to say.
“Twenty thousand gold coins!?”
Yue Wu and Jeanne D’Arc were both stunned by the price, especially Yue Wu. He had never imagined that a single piece of purple agate could be worth twenty thousand gold coins. Such happiness had come too suddenly.
“Esteemed sir, do you find it too little? Then I…”
Before Alys could finish her sentence, Yue Wu interrupted her.
“No, no, no, twenty thousand gold coins it is. Can you give it to us now?”
Yue Wu was afraid the other party would go back on their word, so he quickly agreed to sell it for twenty thousand gold coins.
“Ah! Yes, yes, please wait a moment.”
Alys was startled. She had originally intended to ask if he would sell it for five hundred thousand gold coins, but he had agreed to twenty thousand gold coins directly. What was wrong with the world? It was always full of sudden surprises; she had been frightened several times today.
“Esteemed guest, here is the twenty thousand gold coins for your sale. Please keep it safe.”
“Since your amount is quite large, would you like our shop to exchange it into purple gold coins for you?”
Alys placed the bag containing twenty thousand gold coins on the counter and added.