Unlike the oppressive, gloomy, and burning ruins of Fuyuki City, what greeted the eyes was an endless expanse of green plains.
A gentle breeze brushed over the knee-high grass. In the distance stood an ancient, tranquil medieval European castle. Bright sunlight bathed every player's face, and even the air seemed to carry the fragrance of earth.
"Wow! This scenery is amazing! The texture of this grass, this lighting!"
PD took a deep breath in the VR environment, relaxing completely. "The developers didn't lie to me; we really are here for a vacation!"
Under the guidance of Dr. Roman, PD followed Mash along a country path until they reached a quiet village.
However, before they could get close, shrill screams and the sound of clashing weapons shattered the tranquility.
"Run! It's the soldiers of France!"
"Why?! Why is the Royal Army slaughtering us civilians?!"
PD and the viewers in the livestream were stunned, quickly rushing up a small hill.
The scene before them made everyone gasp.
The once-tranquil village had already been plunged into a sea of flames.
A group of soldiers wearing standard-issue French armor, their eyes crimson, were slaughtering the defenseless villagers like rabid dogs.
And behind these crazed soldiers stood a figure that could not be ignored.
It was a young girl. She had a waterfall of pale, long hair and was wearing a set of fierce, menacing heavy armor that emitted an ominous black aura.
In her hand, she clutched a tattered battle flag, scorched black by flames. Her golden, slit-pupiled eyes were filled with undisguised brutality and extreme hatred.
"That is... Saint Jeanne d'Arc?!"
PD exclaimed.
He had seen Jeanne's character art in the Servant previews before the server opened; she was supposed to be a pure saint radiating holy white light, holding a golden fleur-de-lis battle flag!
Why did this Jeanne before him look like a demon crawling out of hell?!
In the VR view, the girl raised the pitch-black battle flag high in her hand. Her voice, filled with extreme resentment and bone-chilling cold, echoed over the entire burning village:
"Roar! My fury!"
"France... this country that betrayed me, these ignorant people!"
"I once raised my banner for you, shed every drop of blood for you, yet how you repaid me was with that raging fire in the Rouen square that burned me alive!!!"
The girl laughed maniacally, but tears streamed down her cheeks, evaporating into black magical energy.
"Since you do not need salvation, then let this land, along with your hypocritical faith, be burned to ashes by my fire of vengeance!"
"Come forth! My kin!!!"
Following the gut-wrenching roar of the "Dragon Witch" Jeanne d'Arc Alter, the entire sky instantly darkened.
PD looked up sharply.
The pupils of the millions of viewers in the livestream contracted violently at this moment.
The clouds were brutally torn apart, and hundreds upon hundreds of massive wyverns with huge, fleshy wings swooped down from the clouds, blocking out the sun!
They spewed scorching, toxic breath, instantly turning vast swathes of forest and houses into a sea of flames.
The gale whipped up by their huge wings even blew PD back several steps in the VR simulation!
"Holy crap!!! What kind of visual impact is this?!"
"A blackened, vengeful saint? Controlling dragons to slaughter a country?! This plot is so damn exciting!"
"The execution by fire in Rouen... I remember now, in real history, Saint Jeanne d'Arc was burned as a witch! The dev team perfectly combined myth and history!"
"This sense of oppression is ten times more terrifying than the Black Saber in Fuyuki City!"
The chat screen was instantly filled with dense exclamation marks; all players were pinned to the spot by this highly tense opening sequence.
"Senpai! The villagers are in danger! Please give battle instructions immediately!"
Beside him, Mash's anxious voice pulled PD back to reality.
A dark red wyvern, the size of a two-story building, was flapping its fleshy wings and roaring as it swooped towards them, followed by a large group of French soldiers corrupted by dragon-like magical energy.
"Damn! Bring it on! Daring to be arrogant in front of me? Today, I'll let you big lizards taste the power of my iron-clad formation!"
PD immediately switched into the Commander's perspective.
[First Singularity - Defense of the Outskirts of Domrémy Village]
[Battle Start!]