chapter 30

Therefore, all soldiers got ready to continue their journey to the city of Chinon, where the not yet crowned king Charles VII was. Days passed, and they had to hide in many places so that no one could spot them since they wanted to get there as soon as possible. Soon, they spotted a long river, and one of the places had a small fortress town with large defense towers, several soldiers passing over the wall, as well as below, all with armor and their swords, spears, and other weapons.

"It seems quite fortified. Can I get in by destroying everything?" Rémy and Jeanne, and their group, who were not far from that city, spoke, joking with Jeanne by their side.

"I don't know, but I believe you can," Jeanne was not sure, but she believed it anyway. She looked at Rémy with her blue eyes, squeezing his delicate hand as a sign of encouragement for Rémy. "I think I can definitely do it now since you're believing in me," Rémy said, putting his hand on his heart as if he were deeply motivated and moved.

"Ré, stop joking. Nobody will believe you with that ridiculous acting," Jeanne laughed and told Rémy to stop his ridiculous actor that he was doing. All the soldiers who were behind Jeanne and Rémy looked at him with a strange look, of course, the soldiers who had been accompanying him for years did not find it so strange, as they had become accustomed to one or two jokes that Rémy made. The fear and terror that Jeanne's soldiers had before when they were with Rémy had long since ended when they really got to know him.

"Ridiculous? To me, it seemed quite convincing since you seemed convinced," Rémy said, looking at Jeanne, who was looking ahead, where the city was already approaching.

"It must be just an impression since I wasn't convinced of anything," Jeanne turned to Rémy and spoke, giving him a smile. Soon, they approached the fortress town and stopped because the soldiers guarding the city asked, "Who are you and where do you come from!?" One of the soldiers who was guarding the fortress town spoke aloud, holding his sword, and the others who were at his door held their weapons tightly, ready for any moment they could act. Rémy looked at the flag that Jeanne was holding and wondered if these guards were blind and not seeing that it was a flag of France. Of course, there is probably an Englishman who did this to infiltrate or something similar.

"I am Jeanne D'arc, also known as the Maid of Orleans!" Jeanne, who was on top of her white mare, dismounted and introduced herself to the soldiers. "Pleased to meet you. Could you please call someone with authority to speak to me?" Jeanne had not finished speaking and continued to ask to meet someone who had authority in the city. "Wait a minute, I'll send someone," said one of the soldiers who had already heard of Joan, as her name had been mentioned years before. You are a soldier, who was Jeanne. One of the soldiers standing nearby ran into the city to call the authority Jeanne was requesting. All the soldiers in Jeanne's group got off their horses to wait. Remy did not dismount from his red horse and just looked around, also looking at the soldiers who had gotten off their horses. "As always, it takes forever to arrive," Remy complained, as it was taking quite a while for the authority to reach them. "Ré!" Jeanne looked at him disapprovingly for what he had just said. "What's wrong?" Remy asked, as if he didn't understand why she had given him that look.

"Don't be rude," said Jeanne, and then turned to the soldiers, waiting for the authority to arrive. "Okay," Remy replied normally and put his hands behind his red hair, waiting for the authority to arrive. Soon the city manager arrived and looked at Jeanne, who was standing. Jeanne realized that the guards around her stood up straight and showed respect for the person who had just arrived. "Good morning. Please read this," Jeanne approached the person and handed him the letter she had brought. The man, who was older, took Jeanne's letter and opened it, soon seeing what was written. "You may enter," said the man, just for Jeanne to enter. But Remy, who was not far away, heard this. He spoke from where he was: "I'll go in with her, if you don't mind." Remy spoke seriously, with his lance by his side, swinging it with skill and talent. The lance passed smoothly between his fingers. The person in question looked at Remy and then at the lance that was swaying gently. He frowned slightly, as if he was thinking about what Remy was doing.

Remy's lance began to move faster than before, creating a hiss in the air as it cut through the wind. "Can I go?" Rémy asked impatiently. He didn't care if the man would let him into the city or not. He would enter, anyway, whether they liked it or not. The man who was receiving them was calm and didn't seem very disturbed by what Rémy was doing. "You must be Remy, right?" he said, in a tone of voice as calm as the surface of a lake on a full moon night. "Yes, pleased to meet you. Now, can I enter?" Remy asked, being a little more courteous this time, but no less insistent. The man nodded calmly, "No problem, you can enter."

Remy dismounted from the horse and followed Jeanne, who poked him. "That's a nasty thing to do! But thank you for always being by my side," she said, with a smile on her face. "You're welcome," replied Remy, giving her a small pinch on the butt, without anyone seeing. Jeanne jumped with surprise and called for Remy with a red face. The man who was leading them looked back to see what was going on. "Did something happen?" he asked, curious. "It was nothing," Jeanne quickly replied, and the man continued on his way.

Soon, they arrived at a church and Remy sighed when he saw where they had come. "I thought we were going to talk to the king or something," he commented, frustrated. "I'm sorry, Lord Remy, but I can't let her go talk to the king without doing some tests," the man said, with a serious expression. He lightly knocked on the church door, and it opened slowly. From inside, a man dressed like a religious figure came out, with a curious look. "What happened? Does the king need something?" asked the bishop, with a soft and soothing voice, as if it were a whisper in someone's ear. "This is Jeanne D'Arc, the girl who claims to be sent by God," said the man, directly and quickly, pointing to Jeanne. The bishop was surprised and looked at her, examining her from head to toe. "Yes, what does she want?" he asked, curious. The man in charge of the city handed a letter to the bishop, who read it carefully, frowning a few times as he read.

The bishop approached Jeanne D'Arc, looking at her with suspicion. "This is not possible. Jeanne D'Arc, could you accompany me to do some tests?" He asked with a grave voice, hoping she would follow him into the church. Jeanne nodded calmly, ready to face any challenge.

Remy held Jeanne's hand, but was prevented from accompanying her. The bishop and the man in charge of the city watched him with suspicion, indicating that he could not enter the church. Impatient, Remy paced back and forth, anxious for Jeanne to finish the tests soon. Hours passed and Jeanne had not yet come out. Remy began to wonder what was happening inside, while his nervousness increased.

Finally, the door of the church opened and Jeanne came out, exuding vibrant energy. The faces of the bishop and the man from the city expressed surprise. "Can I go talk to the king?" Jeanne asked with determination. But her hopes were dashed when the man replied that she would have to undergo more tests before being allowed to speak to the king.

"That will take time, and the longer we stay here, the more people will die." Remy appealed to the emotional side of the men, but his attempt was in vain. Jeanne realized that, unfortunately, she would still have to face more trials before being able to fulfill her mission.

"Unfortunately, Miss Jeanne, I can't do anything without proving that you are telling the truth and verifying who you really are." The man explained kindly, trying to ease the situation. "Let's do another test tomorrow, maybe then you'll have a chance to talk to the king."

Jeanne felt discouraged by the situation, but did not show her frustration. "Okay," she replied resignedly, already expecting that to be the answer. The bishop, who was still in doubt about Jeanne, entered the church and closed the door. Remy and Jeanne retired to a safe place where they could rest and prepare for the next challenge.

"What did they ask?" Remy asked curiously as they entered a safe place to rest. "About God things, about the voice I hear," Jeanne replied, not hiding anything from Remy. "Do you think they believed you?" Remy anxiously questioned, worried about what could happen to Jeanne.

"I don't think so, but they didn't completely disagree either," Jeanne answered with a serious look.

"But we'll have another chance tomorrow. Let's prepare for it," she added, trying to keep the spirits up. "We need to show them that I am God's chosen one and that I have an important mission to fulfill."

Remy nodded in agreement with Jeanne. He knew that she wouldn't give up easily and would do everything to prove her innocence and divine mission. They spent the rest of the night preparing for the next test and discussing strategies to convince the bishop and other religious leaders of the truthfulness of Jeanne's visions.

The next day, Jeanne and Remy returned to the church for another test. This time, Jeanne was more confident and determined than ever. She answered all the questions firmly and convincingly, showing the religious leaders that she really had a divine mission to fulfill.

Finally, after much debate and discussion, the bishop and other religious leaders agreed to give an audience to the king and allow Jeanne to present her mission to him. Jeanne and Remy felt relieved and hopeful with this news, knowing that they were one step closer to achieving their goal.

On the day of the audience with the king, Jeanne and Remy were anxious but determined. They presented themselves before the king, and Jeanne began to speak with a firm and clear voice.

"Your Majesty, I am Jeanne d'Arc, God's chosen one to lead the French army and free France from English occupation," Jeanne said, looking directly into the king's eyes.

The king was surprised by Jeanne's confidence and determination. He looked at the religious leaders accompanying him and, seeing the approving expression on their faces, decided to listen more.

"I have had visions since my childhood, in which God showed me that I should lead the French army and free France from English occupation," Jeanne continued.

The king asked, "And how can we know that you speak the truth? How can we know that your visions are real?"

"I understand your doubts, Your Majesty. But I am not afraid to prove the truthfulness of my visions. I offer myself to lead the French army and fight against the English. If I fail in my mission, I am willing to face the consequences," Jeanne said with determination.

The king was impressed by Jeanne's courage. He turned to the religious leaders and asked, "What do you think?"

The bishop replied, "Your Majesty, I believe that Jeanne is indeed God's chosen one. Her visions are true, and she has a divine mission to fulfill. I think we should give her a chance to lead the French army."

The king agreed and said, "It is decided. Jeanne, you will have the opportunity to lead the French army and fight against the English. If you succeed, it will prove that your visions are real, and you will have my full support."

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