Dragon Clan: Lu Mingfei Returns from Japan

Chapter 725 The Book of Raziel and the Resurrected Saintess (Part 2)
Charlotte looked at Lu Mingfei's suddenly bewildered face and nodded calmly without expression.

"Yes, you heard right. There is indeed a claim that Gilles de Rais successfully resurrected Joan of Arc."

Charlotte's expression didn't seem like she was joking, and Lu Mingfei also knew that although Charlotte and Xia Mi both had the character "Xia" in their names and had similar figures, they weren't like his junior sister who loved to joke around.

However, to Lu Mingfei, this event still sounded somewhat like a fantasy.

After all, reality isn't the Holy Grail War, and you can't summon a Heroic Spirit named Jeanne d'Arc simply by making a pact with the Holy Grail. Even the little devil Lu Mingze, whom he considered omnipotent, seems unable to bring the dead back to life. "Don't die" is only effective on those who are on the verge of death but haven't truly died yet.

Charlotte, however, said that Gilles de Rais had successfully resurrected Joan of Arc? This gave Lu Mingfei the feeling of listening to a medieval fantasy story.

...Okay, he actually seems to know someone who died and came back to life. That person is himself.

Lu Mingfei realized that not only could he be resurrected, but he could even be reborn back to his junior high school days. So, the idea that Gilles de Rais had successfully resurrected Joan of Arc didn't seem so unacceptable anymore.

"Is this recorded in the Book of Ragnar?" Lu Mingfei asked.

Charlotte shook her head: "No, not at all. The Book of Ragnar is just an alchemical notebook of a medieval dark sorcerer. However, because Gilles de Rais is so famous, or rather, infamous, there are quite a few records of related events in both human and hybrid historical texts. Do you know which year Joan of Arc died?"

"1431?" Lu Mingfei replied.

As a self-proclaimed otaku, he's practically a die-hard fan of the Fate series, given that Jeanne d'Arc is one of the most popular Servants in the series. Through Kinoko Nasu's light novel *Fate/Apocrypha*, he indirectly learned some lesser-known facts. Jeanne d'Arc was captured in 1430 during a battle with the English army and was burned at the stake in 1431. She was only 19 years old when she died.

Charlotte glanced at Lu Mingfei with her emerald-green eyes, which sparkled with surprise, and said with admiration, "Not bad."

She paused for a moment, then continued, “Joan of Arc was martyred in 1431. After her death, many women appeared in England and France, all claiming to be the reincarnation of Joan of Arc; or that the one burned at the stake was actually a stand-in of Joan of Arc who had escaped from the prison in Rouen before her execution and raised funds in Joan of Arc’s name.”

Lu Mingfei asked, "Aren't they all just people who use the name of Joan of Arc's resurrection to swindle and deceive?"

Even today, many people claim to be the reincarnation of Qin Shi Huang and ask for 50 yuan to cover travel expenses to visit his Terracotta Army. Although most people who claim to be the reincarnation of Qin Shi Huang are joking, Lu Mingfei has also seen people in the news who genuinely believe in such things.

In the Middle Ages, when information was asymmetrical, the number of people impersonating Joan of Arc to commit fraud was even greater.

Charlotte nodded: "Yes. Those who claimed to be Joan of Arc were obviously frauds, but some people were indeed fooled. Therefore, Bishop Pierre of the French Papacy spent four years arresting all the women who claimed to be the resurrected Joan of Arc and bringing them back to the Inquisition for trial. Those imposters were also punished accordingly... Until one day in 1440, Pierre met a woman named Jane de Almoseis."

"What a tongue-twisting name."

Lu Mingfei subconsciously complained, "Come to think of it, are all French names this difficult to pronounce?"

Charlotte rolled her eyes at Lu Mingfei:
“I’m getting down to business! If you find her name a mouthful, I’ll just call her Jane from now on… This Jane is the wife of Robert II, the Royal Marshal of Barroy, who was a count in France. Logically speaking, a countess should have a very comfortable life and wouldn’t need to impersonate Joan of Arc.”

"But this countess, like all those charlatans, claimed to be the reincarnation of Joan of Arc. Pierre, hearing that the countess was also impersonating Joan of Arc, went to visit Count Robert. However, he was horrified when he saw Jane for the first time... because she looked exactly like Joan of Arc."

Lu Mingfei frowned: "Exactly the same?"

Charlotte nodded:
"Yes. As a bishop of the French Papacy, Pierre naturally had many encounters with Joan of Arc and would certainly recognize her. Of course, many years had passed since Joan's death, so it's possible that Pierre's memory was flawed. But even Joan's own brother believed that Jane was the resurrected Joan. Gilles de Rais even entrusted his personal guard to Jane. You must know that Gilles de Rais was no ordinary man; he was one of Joan's most loyal comrades, and it's unlikely that he would mistake Joan for someone else."

Upon hearing this, Lu Mingfei no longer found the matter particularly strange.

"So, Charlotte, the Joan of Arc you mentioned who was successfully resurrected by Gilles de Rais, is this Countess Jane?"

"Yes. Because of this, there has always been a view in the old era of bio-alchemy that Gilles de Rais and Jean de Fontanael, the author of the Book of Rais, discovered the secret of resurrection in alchemy."

Lu Mingfei said, "But just because we look alike doesn't really prove anything, right? After all, there are always coincidences in this world..."

He thought to himself that Erii and his senior sister looked quite alike. Even when he first saw Erii underwater, he mistook her for Nono... However, their temperaments were quite different.

If we only look at their faces, and the two people are 85% similar, then considering their different temperaments and clothing styles, that similarity would probably drop to around 60%.

One is a somewhat eccentric and unrestrained mature woman, while the other is a well-behaved and obedient kitten who always likes to snuggle up to you.

Charlotte smiled and said, "To conclude that Jane is the reincarnation of Joan of Arc based solely on her appearance is, of course, too hasty. What's strange is that Jane not only looks exactly like Joan of Arc, but her resume is also very interesting."

"Interesting? How interesting?"

“你知道贞德死于1431年5月。而这位伯爵夫人，她在1431年之前的所有经历几乎是一片空白。查不到她的家庭出身也找不到她的亲朋好友。她最早能查到的信息，就是在1431年的6月忽然出现在卢森堡公爵夫人的家中……而卢森堡公爵夫人正是贞德的好友之一。”

Lu Mingfei paused for a moment upon hearing this.

This isn't just interesting, it's absolutely amazing!
Charlotte continued:
"Not only that, Jane's combat prowess is also quite remarkable. She is highly skilled in both swordsmanship and archery, and she also has experience in leading troops. When she stayed at the Duchess's house, she often led the Duke's private army to wipe out bandits."

"In conclusion, given the gravity of the situation, Pierre brought Jane back to the Inquisition, deciding to have his colleagues find the flaws in this 'Joan of Arc'. However, the Countess surprised everyone during her first interrogation. Her theological knowledge was so extensive that she refuted a group of religious judges in court."

"These inquisitors are all old pedants immersed in theological works. Let alone a woman, even if the French cardinals came to the inquisition, they might not be able to refute them. The last woman to refute the inquisitors was Joan of Arc, and this time, this countess who looks exactly like Joan of Arc has done the same thing."

"As things progressed, the news naturally reached the ears of Charles VII, the King of France at the time. He was shocked by this woman who looked almost exactly like Joan of Arc, who was rich in theological knowledge, whose background was full of mystery, and whose identity was unknown even to Joan of Arc's brothers and comrades. He ultimately decided to personally participate in Jane's trial."

"His first test for this Countess who called herself Joan of Arc was a game of double literature. He had his double sit on the throne to meet Jane, but the moment Jane saw the double of Charles VII, she recognized that it was not Charles VII himself and loudly requested that Charles VII himself appear." "Everyone was startled because Jane recognized Charles VII's double. At this moment, Charles VII himself appeared and extended his right hand to Jane, saying, 'In the name of God, welcome back.'"

"This statement led everyone to believe that even Charles VII thought the Countess was the resurrected Joan of Arc. However, after Jane curtsied to Charles VII, she suddenly burst into tears and admitted that she was an imposter Joan of Arc."

Lu Mingfei waited for a while, wanting to hear Charlotte continue the story, but Charlotte didn't speak.

"What about the next part?" Lu Mingfei couldn't help but ask Charlotte.

"What's behind that?"

"That's the story after that. What happens after Jane admits she's an imposter Joan of Arc?"

Charlotte said, "That's it. The story ends here. Charles VII sent Jane back to the Earl's house, and the Countess never left the Earl's estate again, eventually dying alongside the Earl in 1449 and 1450 respectively."

Upon hearing this, Lu Mingfei was furious: "Damn it! What kind of third-rate novelist wrote this terrible story with such a terrible ending?"

Charlotte shrugged: "Be content, at least this story gave you an ending. Many authors write books with terrible endings, they don't even give you an ending."

"So, is that Jane actually the reincarnation of Joan of Arc?"

"Who knows? I think probably not."

"What's your reason? Because you think that no matter how amazing bio-alchemy is, it's impossible for it to have the ability to bring people back to life?"

"Not exactly. It was the Gottingen family that set the fire that burned Joan of Arc. At that time, the Gottingen family was already a well-known mixed-race family in Europe, and they had their own influence in the Inquisitions of various countries. The Gottingen family proposed to burn Joan of Arc at the stake. The head of the Gottingen family witnessed Joan of Arc's burning and even wrote about it in his diary."

"?"

Lu Mingfei paused for a moment, then said, "Alright, alright. I was wondering why you were so sure Joan of Arc was dead. So your ancestor was the one who did this evil deed. Truly, you've done all sorts of wicked things!"
Charlotte looked up at Lu Mingfei and said with a half-smile, "Let me guess, are you cursing the Gao Tinggen family in your heart right now for all the bad things they've done?"

Lu Mingfei denied it: "...No way. Don't make wild guesses. What I'm thinking about is whether tonight's hot pot broth is extra spicy or insanely spicy."

"Hey! Are you trying to kill me with all this spiciness?! You know perfectly well I can't handle spicy food!"

Charlotte curled her lip: "But it doesn't really matter. It's normal for you to curse the Gottingen family in your heart. It's just that under those circumstances, letting Joan of Arc die by burning at the stake was the best outcome. Think about it, in the Middle Ages, how much inhuman treatment would a woman from an enemy country suffer when captured by her own country's army and the Papacy? How many unimaginable punishments would she endure? Proposing burning Joan of Arc at the stake was the only thing the Gottingen family could do."

Charlotte spoke casually, but her eyes unconsciously dimmed.

Lu Mingfei's mind stirred slightly. He suspected that the diary written by the head of the Gauttingen family hundreds of years ago contained not only records of Joan of Arc's martyrdom, but also perhaps some darker and crueler things. Charlotte just hadn't told him.

For a warrior like Joan of Arc, living in humiliation and suffering was indeed a better ending than dying with dignity.

"However, although the diaries of the Gauttingen family ancestors accurately record the martyrdom of Joan of Arc."

Charlotte spoke again:
"However, some alchemists who are unaware of the truth and who sided with Gilles de Rais in resurrecting Joan of Arc believe that Jane was Joan of Arc herself, and that the reason she wept and confessed before Charles VII was because she already knew about the bloody and cruel acts Gilles de Rais had committed in order to resurrect her."

"The evidence is that in the same year Jane confessed to Charles VII, 1440, Gilles de Rais's long-standing practice of luring children into alchemical experiments was exposed. The French papacy investigated Gilles de Rais and quickly confirmed his crimes. Ultimately, Gilles de Rais was burned at the stake, just like Joan of Arc."

"They believe that Gilles de Rais's alchemical experiments with children were told to Charles VII and the French papacy by the resurrected Joan of Arc. She couldn't bear to see her former friend go further down this wrong path. The reason she called herself an imposter Joan of Arc was because she felt that her resurrection was bought with the lives of hundreds or thousands of innocent children, and that she was no longer worthy of bearing the name of Joan of Arc."

Lu Mingfei nodded: "That is one possible explanation. This explanation explains why Charles VII and the Papacy did not punish Jian Mingming for impersonating Joan of Arc, but instead sent her back to the Earl's mansion. Because she really is Joan of Arc herself."

As the conversation progressed, Lu Mingfei became even more interested in the Book of Raziel. A book recording dark alchemy and mysticism, with so many complex and bizarre stories behind it.

Deep down, Lu Mingfei had a feeling that he might actually be on the right track.

"So do you have a way to help me borrow the Book of Raziel?" Lu Mingfei asked Charlotte.

Charlotte was, after all, one of the seven board members of Kassel College. The Gattuso family, as board members, had the ability to provide Caesar with the Philosopher's Stone; borrowing a book for themselves shouldn't have been a difficult task for Charlotte.

Charlotte glanced at Lu Mingfei: "Although I am a member of the school board, I still have no way to bypass Norma's system permissions."

Upon hearing this, Lu Mingfei suddenly deflated. Just as he was about to think that Charlotte, as a school board member, had very little power, Charlotte continued, "However, I can get you the original copy of the Book of Raziel."

Lu Mingfei immediately perked up: "Can you get your hands on the original copy of 'The Book of Raziel'?"

Keep in mind, even the library at Kassel College only has a copy of the Book of Raziel, yet Charlotte claims she can borrow the original? Is this the foundation of a thousand-year-old mixed-race family?

Charlotte nodded, replying with a slightly arrogant yet smug tone, "Of course. It's already in my house."

……

(End of this chapter)