"You're mistaken, my lord." Kirie immediately put on a serious face.
"Well then." Dracula reached out and tugged at the strap tied around the box. "Let's at least check what's inside first…"
Dracula tore off the cardboard wrapping the box and found a sleek black cabinet inside. There were small letters written on the surface.
"Bio… logical…?" Dracula and Kirie leaned in to examine it more closely. Dracula carefully read out the characters one by one.
Suddenly—bang bang! Loud thuds rang out from within the cabinet, as if something inside was trying to escape. Both Dracula and Kirie jumped in fright.
In perfect synchronization, they took a step back, then exchanged sheepish glances.
"Ahem… My lord, we should probably open it," Kirie said with a slight cough, her fists clenched tightly.
"You're right, that's very reasonable." Dracula nodded, then unlatched the black cabinet.
Bang!
The lid suddenly burst open, and a girl stood up from within. She stretched out her slender limbs with practiced grace.
She had long golden hair braided neatly, wore a white sleeveless blouse and a blue skirt. Her slim waist, her ample bosom…
Kirie's eyes turned distinctly less friendly.
"Phew! I'm saved, finally saved! So this is Japan?"
The girl took a deep breath, then turned to see Dracula staring dumbfounded and Kirie glaring with obvious hostility.
"Ah, my apologies—I got a bit too excited." She quickly tidied her clothes, then bowed deeply. "I am the Servant Jeanne d'Arc, summoned for this Holy Grail War in the Ruler class. I've received divine revelation to assist Sir Dracula in resolving this incident. May I ask, are you Sir Dracula?"
"I am," Dracula replied with a nod. "That's me."
"Then you must be Miss Kirie, Sir Dracula's partner?" Jeanne turned to Kirie with a warm smile.
"Yes, I'm Kirie," she replied, her attitude suddenly much more amicable.
"She's not my partner—she's my housekeeper," Dracula said bluntly.
Kirie wordlessly stomped on Dracula's foot.
"Hey now, Kirie, if you've got a complaint, just say it outright." Dracula gave her a questioning look.
Kirie snorted coldly and turned her head away.
Pfft. Jeanne giggled. "I see how it is—you're that kind of couple."
She cast Dracula a subtle, knowing look. "You'd better treasure her, Sir Dracula."
Dracula glanced at her, surprised. She looks pure, but turns out she's hiding some sharp instincts underneath that facade…
"Oh," he muttered, then said, "Let's talk inside. World, clean this stuff up."
Leaving the poor Stand to sweep up the paper and discarded cabinet, Dracula led Jeanne and Kirie into the guest parlor of Castlevania.
Once they were seated and Kirie had brewed tea, the three of them gathered around a small table. Jeanne took a sip and then got straight to the point:
"Sir Dracula, time is short, so I'll be direct. Please look at this list."
She handed him a sheet of paper.
Dracula took it and scanned the contents—it listed common magical materials like mercury and others. Yet between the lines, he could see glimpses of Jeanne's mischievous personality peeking through. She had added notes in parentheses after nearly every item. For example, next to "mercury" was:
(If you're wealthy, use mercury. Otherwise, to save money, I recommend using blood—chicken or pig is fine, but no human blood please. Even if I can't beat you, I'll still be angry!)
A little chibi angry face was even drawn at the end.
Dracula stared at her smiling face in silence, then motioned for her to continue.
"These materials are used to draw the summoning circle for heroic spirits. Nothing rare, all of them are available at the Fuyuki City marketplace," Jeanne explained. "Please, Sir Dracula, help me purchase them. Once we have them, I'll draw the summoning array and you'll be able to summon two Servants to assist in the war."
"Two?" Dracula raised a brow. "Well, having two at my disposal is already a luxury. I'm not interested in playing the saint and freeing every spirit in the Throne of Heroes."
You've really gotten that lazy, huh?!
The system screamed in his mind.
Jeanne blushed slightly. "The truth is… I'm broke."
She lowered her head in embarrassment. "This body I've descended into is human and still needs food and shelter. The original host wasn't well-off either. I took the cheapest method to travel from France to Japan—but even so, I spent everything I had."
Her stomach gave a loud growl. "And now… I'm hungry."
The cheapest method… you mailed yourself? And how the hell did you pass inspection? What, are the postal services in France and Japan run by monkeys?
Dracula stared at her, utterly dumbfounded. Then he turned to Kirie. "Give the poor girl something to eat."
Kirie quickly summoned undead servants and brought out a small feast.
"Kirie, why did you make so much?" Dracula asked, eyeing Jeanne's slender waist. "Can Miss Jeanne really eat all of this?"
He didn't even try to hide his thoughts. If something crossed his mind, he said it—he simply couldn't be bothered to filter himself.
"No no, I can finish it!" Jeanne drooled as she sat down, clasped her hands, and whispered, "Thank you, Lord, for this meal."
Then she began devouring everything with great enthusiasm.
"Wait—how did you know?" Dracula asked, bewildered.
"No idea," Kirie replied, shaking her head. Her silver twin tails bounced. "I just had a feeling Jeanne could eat that much…"
Dracula glanced at Kirie's chest, then at Jeanne's, and suddenly had a flash of insight. "Ah, I get it. Kirie, this is discrimination…"
Kirie crushed his foot under her heel. "I don't know what you're implying, but I'm sure it's something impolite."
Watching Jeanne eat contentedly, she leaned down and whispered in Dracula's ear, "Let's go, my lord. I'll accompany you to Fuyuki City to buy those materials."
Dracula waved lazily. "No thanks. I'm too lazy to walk."
Kirie stomped her foot, then said, "I heard there's a game store on the commercial street down there."
Dracula hesitated for a moment, then stood up. "Alright, let's go."
Kagarino Kirie reached out and linked her arm with his, happily dragging him along.
Jeanne suddenly looked up, giving Dracula a pure, angelic smile—and even gave him a big thumbs-up.