[Altair Miller]
A beauty so dazzling it barely seemed real.
She had long blonde hair, braided into a ponytail that flowed gracefully down her back, while her eyes shone with a breathtaking violet-blue hue. Her body was protected by gleaming silver armor, with metal plates covering her shoulders, arms, and chest. Beneath the armor, a dark blue tunic with white accents flowed down gracefully to her knees. In her hands, she firmly held a long white flag adorned with golden lilies that danced with the wind.
If an angel ever decided to walk among mortals, it would certainly look like her.
"Ne lâchez pas vos armes, tenez-les fermement!" she shouted in flawless French.
The soldiers stood frozen as if a ghost had appeared before them. Even so, they obeyed her serene voice and gripped their weapons tighter.
She turned to us. "Can you move?" she asked, her gaze serene and gentle.
"Yeah."
"Good. I'm counting on you." The blonde-haired woman shouted as she charged toward the wyverns waving her flag.
"She's a Servant, right?!" Ritsuka asked, looking at her.
"Absolutely," I replied, watching her rush toward the wyverns.
"But who is she?" Ritsuka tilted her head.
"No idea," I replied, glancing her way. "But for now, let's focus on the wyverns… Nobu, help me in the skies, while Okita and Artoria handle the ground. Mash, protect the soldiers."
Artoria scoffed but didn't argue with my orders.
"Understood, Altair-senpai," Mash said, raising her shield and positioning herself between the soldiers and the wyverns.
Standing atop her own arquebus, Nobunaga smiled, raising her hand as multiple rifles materialized around her.
Seeing the wyverns opening their mouths, I flexed my legs and launched myself toward them. "Ruyi Jingu!" I shouted, summoning the stone staff into my hands.
Gripping it tightly, I spun it overhead in a wide arc before thrusting it forward. "Grow!" I commanded. The staff expanded rapidly, striking a wyvern right in its open mouth. The flames it was about to unleash exploded inside its throat.
In mid-air, I twisted my body, swinging the Ruyi Jingu in wide, devastating arcs toward the wyverns. The blows were so powerful that their heads burst into fragments under the overwhelming force of the staff.
"GROARRSSH!" one roared, flying toward me.
Smiling, I simply ignored it.
In the next instant, its body was riddled with bullets from Nobunaga's arquebuses. She leaped from her position, a gleaming katana materializing in her right hand, and with a swift motion, she drove the blade into the creature's neck. Using the wyvern's body as a foothold, she stepped on the katana's handle, driving it even deeper into its scaly neck, and with her free hand, summoned another arquebus, firing at a wyvern trying to break through our line.
The beast collapsed, its heavy body hitting the ground with a dull thud.
Watching my little warlady, I smirked as I let myself fall toward the ground, not caring about the height. "Shrink," I muttered, and the staff returned to its normal size.
With a swift motion, I hurled the stone staff upward, spinning it rapidly, slicing through the air with a sharp whistling sound. At the same time, I spun my body, delivering a powerful kick to the staff's base. With the force of my foot, the staff shot forward like a blazing meteor, cutting through the sky toward the flying lizard.
The staff struck the first wyvern with a deafening boom, piercing through its tough scales like they were paper. The impact was so overwhelming that the creature's body exploded into fragments, sending shards of its natural armor flying in all directions. The shockwave from the collision expanded like an explosion, obliterating the nearby wyverns.
As I descended, I watched chunks of wyverns fall from the sky like rain.
Ignoring the gruesome rain, I took a deep breath, closed my eyes for a moment, and activated my skill — [Mystic Transformation: 72 Transformations].
I felt my bones breaking and my skin tearing. My jaw elongated, my teeth sharpened into long fangs, and scales began to cover my body. When I opened my eyes, they glowed a deep gold with vertical slit pupils.
I had transformed into a wyvern thanks to [Mystic Transformation: 72 Form].
"GROARRSSHH!" I roared, a guttural sound echoing from my throat.
Flapping my wings, I charged toward the group of wyverns. I opened my mouth, revealing rows of dagger-like teeth. From my throat, an orange-red glow pulsed, like lava about to erupt.
A torrent of flames incinerated the wyverns in front of me.
I hadn't just transformed into a wyvern — I had gained their racial traits as well. Although I could feel a significant amount of magical energy draining every second, it was well worth it.
With a roar that echoed across the skies, I raised my claws and sank them into the head of a wyvern, feeling its scales give way under my strength. Gripping tightly, I pulled my claws apart in a sharp motion, tearing its head in half as blood sprayed everywhere.
"Mwahahaha! Now you really look like a beast, Master," Nobunaga laughed, standing on my back, her blood-soaked blade gleaming as a twisted smile spread across her lips.
"Groarrssh!" I roared at her, realizing that in this form, I couldn't speak... In fact, moving was difficult. I didn't have fine control over this body — at least, not yet.
It was like wearing an uncomfortable suit that didn't quite fit.
Nobunaga just laughed, raising her arm to summon several arquebuses, unleashing carnage in the air. Several wyverns dropped from the sky, plummeting to the ground.
A historical figure from the Edo period standing atop a dragon subspecies while a massacre unfolded in the air... That would make a fantastic Renaissance painting.
I'll ask Da Vinci to paint it later.
With that in mind, I flew at high speed toward the last wave of wyverns.
Nobunaga leaped off my back as I dove toward a particularly massive wyvern.
It opened its mouth, ready to burn everything around it.
Smirking mentally, I released the transformation, my body instantly reverting to normal.
Still midair after releasing the transformation, I twisted my body and delivered a powerful kick.
The creature let out a guttural, agonized roar as its body plummeted toward the ground, unable to withstand the force of the blow.
The wyvern crashed down like a meteor, the resulting boom shaking the earth. A dense cloud of dust and debris rose, enveloping everything around in a thick veil. Stones and dirt flew in every direction, and for a moment, the battlefield went completely silent.
As the dust began to settle, I slowly raised my hand, running it through my messy hair, and looked up to see the remaining wyverns being obliterated by Nobunaga.
"You're seriously over the top," Artoria said, taking a few steps toward me, blood dripping from her sword and staining the ground.
"A little." I jumped down from the wyvern, landing in front of her. Her golden eyes locked intensely onto mine.
"So now my Senpai can transform into a dragon."
"Seems like it, but it's pretty uncomfortable."
"You really have a few tricks up your sleeve." She grabbed my collar, pulling me closer. "But I don't like taking orders," she said with a cold smile, bringing her face close to mine — so close our lips were practically touching.
Feeling her breath against my face, I raised my hand, gently brushing her cheek, leaning in even closer — our lips nearly meeting. "You lost to me, and don't forget… She might be your Master, but you belong to me," I said with a smirk.
Her eyes widened for a moment, feeling my lips so close, my breath mixing with hers. A faint blush appeared on her pale cheeks.
"You really are a bastard." She let go of my collar, turning her face away to hide her blush.
I just smiled as our group approached.
"Altair-kun… that dragon... was you?!" Ritsuka asked, walking up to me.
"Technically, I was a wyvern… but yeah." I shrugged.
"How?!" She flailed her arms.
"Nothing more than a skill," I replied as Nobunaga landed beside me, and Okita silently walked over.
Okita's face was stained with blood — not hers, obviously, but the beasts'.
She didn't seem bothered in the slightest.
I sighed, raising my hand to wipe the blood from her face. She merely blinked at me, unfazed.
Unfortunately, the lightness of the moment didn't last. I heard a man shouting anxiously to his companions. Looking over my shoulder, I saw the damaged, charred gate being shut.
All the soldiers atop the walls glared at the blonde-haired Servant with anger and hostility.
She just stood there, her eyes fixed on the city wall, a sad expression on her face.
"Va-t'en, sale sorcière !" the soldiers yelled.
"Altair-senpai, what are they shouting?" Mash asked.
"They're saying, 'Get out of here, wicked witch,'" I replied, walking toward the blonde Servant, who was staring down at her feet, her expression helpless — she understood what they said.
"Thank you so much for your help," she said, turning to us with a faint, sad smile.
"No need to thank us; that's what we're here for," I replied with a smile. "But… who are you?" I asked, curiosity gleaming in my eyes — mirrored in hers.
She raised a finger, scratching her cheek with a shy smile, then opened her soft pink lips.
"Jeanne d'Arc, the Maiden of Orléans."
••• ••• •••
A/N: Finally the saint appeared.
Don't forget to throw power stones and leave a review to motivate me.
(Jeanne d'Arc - Character Image)